Quitting Tobacco Once and For All

By Cassie Kauffman, MA

“Quitting smoking is easy. I’ve done it a thousand times.” –Mark Twain

That may sound familiar to a lot of people who have tried to quit tobacco. There is a reason. Nicotine is one of the most powerfully addictive drugs known today. More people are successful at quitting heroin, cocaine and alcohol than tobacco. Years ago the health community would note that it took on average four attempts at quitting tobacco before the individual was successful. Now, due to increased levels of nicotine and other components like ammonia being purposefully added by the tobacco industry to keep addiction levels (and profits) high, it is taking on average seven to eight quit attempts to finally stop.

Most people who use tobacco know this first hand. They have tried and failed multiple times and don’t want to fail again. Approximately 90% of tobacco users (smokers and chewers) know the health consequences and want to quit, but each year less than 10% of them do.

Given this bleak scenario it may sound like there is no solution to this potent addiction. There are, however, techniques that can help increase the likelihood that a tobacco user will try (again) to quit and remain quit. Probably the most important part of quitting is being ready and motivated. A smoker or chewer must be able to envision a life without tobacco. The motivation to quit can come from a variety of sources. Maybe the motivation comes from family members like children, maybe it is an illness caused by the tobacco, or maybe the time has just come to say enough is enough. Here’s another reason: Quitting tobacco is the single most important thing a person can do to improve his or her health and life.

Stay focused on your motivation and take action. Getting support to quit through a class, internet, phone or individually and using the nicotine patches increases the likelihood of quitting for good. On average about three to four percent of those who try to quit without any aid (cold turkey) are successful compared with about 40% who quit when combining nicotine replacement therapy like the patches and quit support classes. The Colorado Quitline at 1-800-QUIT-NOW is a free resource to Colorado residents that provides free nicotine patches and coaching on how to quit.

For those who like more in-person contact, a quarterly You Can Quit class is offered at the North Colorado Medical Center, 1801 16th Street in Greeley. This is a four week class that meets Wednesday evenings from 6:30 pm – 7:30pm. The next class begins January 16, 2008. The cost is $11 to cover supplies. Please RSVP to the Weld County Tobacco Program 304-6470 x2123. You can also talk to your health provider about medications and other methods on how to quit.

And remember, if this isn’t your first time quitting, you can learn from your past experiences about what worked and what didn’t during that attempt to make this effort successful. Even if it feels like you’ve quit a thousand times, all of those past quit attempts are just steps to quitting once and for all!

Cassie Kauffman, MA is a Health Educator with the Weld County Tobacco Program.

Article as seen in the Greeley Tribune December 28, 2007:

http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20071228/NEWS/212104465