Health and Fitness

November 14, 2012

Kaiser Permanente Smoking-Cessation Resources Support the Great American Smokeout

Are you a smoker who is thinking about quitting or trying to quit, or are you concerned about a family member or friend who smokes? Quitting smoking is not easy, but it can be done. Every year more than a million people quit smoking and fortunately, most people who try to stop smoking eventually succeed.

The good news is that the resources to help you succeed are only a mouse-click away. Kaiser Permanente offers several tools to help members stop smoking, and there’s no better time than the present: The Great American Smokeout is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 15. Organized by the American Cancer Society, the Great American Smokeout is a day for tobacco users to start a tobacco-free life or make a plan to quit.

Tobacco use remains the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the U.S., yet about 43.8 million Americans still smoke cigarettes — nearly one in every five adults. As of 2010, there were also 13.2 million cigar smokers in the U.S. and 2.2 million who smoke tobacco in pipes — other dangerous and addictive forms of tobacco.

If you use tobacco in any form (cigarettes, pipes, cigars or smokeless products), you can visit Kaiser Permanente’s online quit-smoking center at www.kp.org/quitsmoking where you will find a wealth of resources that can help you break the habit as well as overcome cravings and withdrawal once you stop. These resources include:

• 11 reasons to quit — including a healthy heart, a healthy pregnancy and baby, a healthier sex life and a more youthful appearance.
  
  
• Information on the risks of being a so-called social smoker and the impact of smoking on your children and grandchildren.
  
  
• Interactive health tools to calculate how much smoking is costing you, how much it affects your lifespan and how much it increases your risk of heart attack.
  
  
• Help on preparing to quit, how to cope with cravings and comprehensive information on medications that are available to help you quit.

Kaiser Permanente members also have access to local programs and classes on quitting tobacco, can talk to wellness coaches with expertise in tobacco cessation, and can take the HealthMedia® Breathe™ online smoking-cessation program.

There are many other comprehensive online quit-smoking resources available, including the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Quitting smoking is one of the most important things you can do to protect your health and the health of your family and friends. If you are thinking about quitting or looking for support, why not take advantage of the online resources available to you and break the smoking habit for good.