Research

Targeting African American nonsmokers to motivate smokers to quit
A new study from the University of Minnesota suggests that social support may be important in assisting African American smokers to quit or to establish home smoking restrictions. Researchers used a series of twelve focus groups composed of African American smokers, nonsmokers, or pairs of cohabitating smokers and nonsmokers to gather information on attitudes and beliefs surrounding changing smoking behavior in the home. Six major themes evolved from these focus groups: smoking tended to have a negative impact on relationships; there was concern about how secondhand smoke would affect children in the household; the use of home smoking rules was limited; the health consequences of smoking and support were motivating to smokers to quit; smokers thought that support persons needed to be compassionate and patient; and there was unanimous interest in increasing support for quitting. The authors suggest that this study could inform the development of a cessation program in which African American nonsmokers are provided with tools to assist the smokers in their homes. Click here to read the study abstract, published in Health Education and Behavior.

Specialized interventions help Latinos quit smoking
A systematic review of smoking cessation interventions among Hispanic adults in the U.S. has shown that Latinos are more likely to quit smoking with assistance than on their own. Researchers reviewed the literature for smoking cessation interventions focused on Latinos. Twelve studies, of which five were randomized controlled trials, were included in the meta-analysis. From these five studies, the smoking cessation outcomes of 947 participants were determined, comparing those in intervention groups (receiving nicotine replacement therapy or some form of counseling) to those in control groups. The odds of abstinence following the treatment period were found to be 54% greater among those in the intervention group compared to the control group, showing promise for culturally-relevant interventions. More research is needed to determine which interventions are most successful for Hispanic Americans. Click here to read more, or read the full article, appearing in the November/December 2010 issue of the American Journal of Health Promotion.

YouTube as a source of quitting smoking information
Research published in Tobacco Control indicates that there is a need to develop and upload smoking cessation videos that portray evidence based practices on YouTube. Researchers used the terms "stop smoking," "quit smoking," and "smoking cessation" to search YouTube's website for videos containing smoking cessation messages in order to evaluate their portrayal of evidence based practices. Of 191 unique videos, 48.9% contained evidence based practices for cessation, while 28.4% portrayed strategies not supported by evidence and 22.7% contained both evidence based practices and those not supported by evidence. The authors note the need for more research to understand how YouTube can best be used to deliver appropriate smoking cessation messages to those wanting to quit. Read the study abstract here.

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Reports

Archived ActionToQuit webinar available: "Two contrary views - unassisted vs. assisted cessation"
On October 25, the Partnership for Prevention's ActionToQuit initiative hosted a debate entitled Two Contrary Views - Unassisted vs. Assisted Cessation. This webinar featured Simon Chapman, Ph.D., Professor of Public Health at the University of Sydney, Australia and Steven A. Schroeder, M.D., Director of the Smoking Cessation Leadership Center at the University of California, San Francisco. The presenters argued each side of the unassisted vs. assisted cessation debate. Dr. Chapman strongly supports the use of mass media campaigns to motivate individuals to quit on their own, rather than encouraging smokers to seek treatment such as medications to help them quit. Dr. Schroeder strongly supports smokers seeking treatment to quit and advocates for a combination of counseling and medications to increase the successfulness of quit attempts. Click here to access the recorded webinar.

More substance abuse treatment centers are providing nicotine replacement therapy to help patients quit tobacco use
A new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that the proportion of substance abuse treatment centers offering nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) to clients has increased steadily from 2006 to 2009. Data from the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS) were used to determine how many facilities and in what type of facilities NRT was offered. Of the 13,513 facilities surveyed in 2009, 2,613 indicated that they offered NRT to patients, a 6% increase since 2006. Hospital inpatient facilities were most likely to offer NRT (79%) compared to residential (28%) or outpatient facilities (16%). SAMHSA encourages all substance abuse treatment facilities to help their clients quit smoking as part of treating the whole person, and notes that NRT is an effective way to support cessation efforts. Click here to read more or click here to download the full report.

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International

A randomized controlled trial of proactive telephone counseling on cold-called smokers' cessation rates (New Zealand)
A new study indicates that proactive telephone counseling with smokers enrolled through active telephone recruitment promotes tobacco abstinence. Researchers in New Zealand enrolled 1,562 smokers through randomly dialed telephone calls, assigning 769 to an intervention group that received proactive telephone counseling and 793 to a control group that received mailed self-help information. Depending on their readiness to quit, between four and six counseling calls were offered to smokers in the intervention group. Follow-up was completed for both groups after four, seven, and thirteen months. Analysis showed that proactive telephone counseling participants were more likely than those in the control group to achieve seven-day point prevalence abstinence at four and seven months, but not after thirteen months. The intervention group was more likely to maintain prolonged abstinence at four months and seven months post-intervention than among the control group. In addition, counseling participants were more likely to have made a quit attempt and to have reduced their cigarette consumption than those that did not receive counseling. Although work must be done to improve the long-term effects of the intervention, enrolling cold-called smokers into telephone counseling is an effective method. Click here to read the abstract of the study, published in Tobacco Control.

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