Montanans: Quit Tobacco in '08, share your story
Join a growing community of Montanans who plan to quit tobacco in 2008
The Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program launches "I Quit! 08" Make a New Year's resolution to quit tobacco for good
The Montana Tobacco Quit Line increases your chances of staying tobacco-free
The New Year is fast approaching, and the Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program (MTUPP) invites Montanans who wish to make quitting tobacco their 2008 New Year's resolution to join an online community called "I Quit! 08." This user-friendly blog, found at HYPERLINK "http://www.IQuit08.com" www.IQuit08.com, encourages tobacco users to share their reasons for quitting and provides helpful resources and advice for starting on a tobacco-free path.
"Increasingly more Montanans are using the Internet to communicate their stories and perspectives to each other. We hope the 'I Quit! '08' blog will serve as an online support network for Montanans who are ready to live a tobacco-free life," said Jan Parmelee, Sanders County Tobacco Prevention specialist. "Quitting smoking or spit tobacco is not easy. We want people to know that they are not alone."
"If you smoke, quitting is the only way to protect your health and the health of others from the deadly effects of tobacco smoke," said Parmelee. Each year, tobacco claims 1,500 Montana lives, and for every person who dies from tobacco, there are 20 more people suffering from at least one tobacco-related disease.
MTUPP also encourages spit tobacco users to visit the blog. Because spit tobacco delivers more nicotine than cigarettes, these products are highly addictive, and users often have great difficulty quitting. Spit tobacco causes oral, esophageal and stomach cancer and gum disease. Montana adult men use spit tobacco at twice the national rate, and 15 percent of Montana high school boys report using spit tobacco.
"Nearly half of Montana's spit tobacco users say they want to quit," said Parmelee. "'I Quit! 08' and the Montana Tobacco Quit Line are here to help spit tobacco users and smokers accomplish this goal." The Montana Tobacco Quit Line is a free service offered to all Montanans who wish to quit smoking or using spit tobacco. The program includes personalized guidance from quit coaches and a four-week supply of nicotine replacement therapy (lozenge, gum or the patch). The toll-free number is 1-800-QUIT-NOW.
"In the last year nearly half of the smokers in Montana tried to quit but were unsuccessful," said Parmelee, "Tobacco users who call the Montana Tobacco Quit Line are seven to 10 times more likely successfully quit than those who try to quit alone."
For more information, contact Jan Parmelee, at 827.6900.