Don't Be Fooled by Big Tobacco - It's Healthier to Quit Smoking and It's Free
1-800-NO-BUTTS Doubles Quitting Success Rate
| Source: California Smokers' Helpline
SAN DIEGO, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- March 30, 2007 -- This April Fools' Day don't be fooled by
tobacco companies' portrayal of smokers as cool, independent individuals.
The reality is that most smokers are addicted to tobacco and the majority
of them want to quit smoking, but
struggle with their addiction.
"Year after year, tobacco companies downplay the harmful effects of smoking
by spending billions of dollars to deceptively advertise tobacco use as
glamorous and cool," said Gary Tedeschi, PhD, clinical director, of the 1-800-NO BUTTS helpline. "This April
1st, don't be fooled any longer. Stop smoking and you'll find out
what 'cool' really feels like, both physically and financially."
From the first hour you quit smoking, your pulse slows to normal, your
blood pressure decreases and, after 24 hours, your chance of a heart attack
decreases. And, if you smoke a pack a day, you'll save nearly $1600 in
your first year of quitting.
For Californians who want help to stop
smoking, the 1-800-NO-BUTTS helpline offers free professional and
confidential telephone counseling whether you are currently addicted to
tobacco, have already quit or want information for a friend or relative.
It also offers services to help individuals quit chewing tobacco and has
experts who can work with teen smokers.
"Most cigarette smokers and tobacco users want to break their addiction and
can really benefit from professional help through the process," said
Tedeschi. "We provide services in six different languages, and the
counseling is designed to help people prepare to quit and then follow them
through the first part of their quit attempt, which can often be very
difficult to do without some support."
Studies conducted by researchers at 1-800-NO-BUTTS have shown that smokers
who used the telephone counseling service were twice as likely to quit
smoking as those who tried to quit on their own.
In addition to telephone counseling, 1-800-NO-BUTTS offers quitting
information, advice and resources on its Web site, www.NoButts.org. It
also recommends www.TobaccoFreeCA.com, a resource for quitting smoking and
eliminating tobacco everywhere in our daily lives.