Research

Doctors need training to help smokers quit
A new clinical trial review indicates that health professionals with smoking cessation training are more effective in helping people to quit smoking than those who have not received such training. The Cochrane Library reviewed 17 clinical trials to examine the success of smoking cessation programs of more than 1,700 health professionals and 28,500 patients. The results show that healthcare professionals with smoking cessation training were more likely to ask patients to set a quit date, make follow-up appointments, counsel smokers, and provide self-help materials. Health professional training is essential in assisting patients with smoking cessation, and providing them with the necessary tools to accomplish this is the key. Click here to read this article. Click here to read the study abstract in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.

Dispelling myths about gender differences in smoking cessation: Population data from the USA, Canada and Britain
A new study published in Tobacco Control sought to identify differences between the sexes in smoking cessation. Data from major national surveys conducted in 2006-2007 in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. were used to estimate smoking cessation rates by age among women and men. The results showed that women under fifty years old were more likely to give up smoking completely than men in the same age group, while among older age groups, men were more likely to quit. Across all age groups, few differences were found. The authors suggest that future studies around gender differences and smoking cessation should be based on data gathered from the general population rather than the atypical clinical samples previous studies have used. Click here to read this study abstract.

Odds of quitting smoking affected by genetics
New research finds that genetics can now help determine the likelihood of an individual quitting smoking on his or her own, or the need for medication to improve the chances of success. This study, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), used existing data that showed that individuals with the high-risk form of a specific gene cluster reported a two-year delay in the median smoking quit age compared to those with low-risk genes. The researchers then conducted a clinical trial that confirmed these findings, showing that individuals with the high-risk gene clusters were more likely to fail in their quit attempts without medication compared to those with low-risk genes. However, using cessation medications increased the likelihood of abstinence in the high risk groups, indicating that these medications may be particularly beneficial for this population. Results from this study show that the effectiveness of smoking cessation medications is dependent on genes, and if a smoker has the high risk gene cluster, they may not easily quit smoking on their own. To read more about this study, click here. Click here for the study abstract published in The American Journal of Psychiatry.

Quitting smoking even in old age prolongs life: Study
Quitting smoking, even later in life, helps to reduce the risk of early death according to a new study published in Archives of Internal Medicine. The researchers reviewed findings from 17 studies in seven countries that were published between 1987 and 2011. Results showed that smokers had an 83% increased risk of death from all causes compared to nonsmokers aged sixty and older. Additionally, former smokers had 34% higher odds for death than those who never smoked. While this signifies an increased risk, former smokers faced a far lower death risk than current smokers. This new data may be an incentive for older smokers to quit, and encouragement for health professionals to increase cessation efforts among older smokers. Click here to read more. Click here for the study abstract.

After 25 years, World No Tobacco Day is making an impact
A new study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research finds that World No Tobacco Day had a significant public health impact. Researchers from the Informatics Program at Children’s Hospital Boston and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health monitored news promoting cessation and internet search queries relating to cessation for six years in seven Latin American nations. They found that cessation news coverage and search queries for cessation peaked on World No Tobacco Day, with an 83% and 84% increase, respectively, compared to a typical day. This new research shows the effectiveness of cessation awareness programs such as World No Tobacco Day, and to otherwise reach increases of the same magnitude, countries would have to increase cigarette taxes by 2.8% every year. To read more, click here.

top

Reports

Partnership for Prevention and ActionToQuit have released a new publication
A new publication has been released by the Partnership for Prevention and ActionToQuit called ActionToQuit Case Studies, 2012. The Case Studies summarize the activities of three states that received funding via the ActionToQuit State Policy Program (Georgia, Iowa, Michigan), and how state advocates and alliances can act to significantly reduce tobacco use through system and policy change. Click here to access the full publication.

Landmark ad campaign yields almost 200,000 more calls to state quitlines after 12 weeks
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Office on Smoking and Health’s (OSH) “Tips From Former Smokers” campaign is proving to be successful. The campaign has generated almost 200,000 more calls to the 1-800-QUIT-NOW national quitline, and the weekly volume to the website www.smokefree.gov has tripled compared to numbers prior to the campaign. The numbers indicate that the 12-week campaign is on track to surpass the overall goal of influencing at least 500,000 quit attempts, and 50,000 successful long-term quits. The CDC estimates the amount of savings in medical and productivity costs as a result of this campaign to be around $70 million. Click here to read more about the success of this campaign.

top

International

European Commission's "Ex-Smokers" campaign 'takes off' on World No Tobacco Day
The European Commission has announced the launch of a new phase of its Europe-wide smoking cessation campaign, “Ex-Smokers are Unstoppable.” The new addition to this campaign includes the world’s first in-flight smoking cessation card, available in-flight to airline passengers across Europe. The card provides smokers with motivational health advice, and links to resources and support such as the “Ex-Smokers are Unstoppable” website and the interactive online tool, iCoach, that provides tailored support. It is the hope of the European Commission that this new campaign, which focuses on the positive benefits of quitting instead of the dangers of smoking, will assist smokers during their flights in the decision to quit smoking by the time they reach their destinations. Click here to read more about this campaign.

top

Back to Table of Contents