For the last 40 years, the third Thursday in November has been the day of the Great American Smokeout. And since our founding in 1978, the American Council on Science and Health has campaigned against smoking on that day, as well as on the other 364 each year.
The 2015 event takes place on Thursday, November 19th and so it is probably fitting that the Council will be at the White House to meet with the administration on deeming regulations for smoking cessation and harm-reduction tools.
Smoking has declined dramatically over the last four decades, and lower youth uptake is the biggest reason. But up to 42 million Americans still smoke cigarettes, and smoking remains the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the United States. Forget activists trying to create concerns about cigars and things like third-hand smoke, as those are all distractions from the real issue, the same way efforts to ban butter due to popcorn lung disease would do more harm than good for a public that needs to take health seriously.
What needs to be remembered most of all is that cigarette smoking is the real problem.
Distractions like pipes (which no one inhales) and raising taxes (which just impact poor people addicted to smoking) are not helping those gripped by a relentless habit that causes them to ingest hundreds of toxic chemicals, dozens of times per day. The American Cancer Society has taken to preaching abstinence-only when it comes to nicotine, but that approach doesn't work for smoking cessation any better than it does for reducing teenage sex.
Gums, patches, e-cigarettes, even hypnosis has been shown to work with some people. These methods all need to be in the tool chest of available options, and we shouldn't be trying to pick winners and losers for people by legislative fiat.
Quitting is hard, that is why we believe that when it comes to smoking cessation whatever works should be embraced.
If you're a smoker, November 19th is a great time to take that first step. The Council has numerous papers on why you should attempt to quit, but we recognize that medical knowledge only goes so far. It's nicotine addiction that makes smokers want to smoke -- even though they know they shouldn't. The proven way to stop smoking is to slowly wean the body off nicotine, and there are a variety of products that can help.
And the second biggest factor in success is social support. You can call any of us at 212-362-7044 and ask to speak to an M.D. and we will find one to speak with you. Any of them will be happy to help.
Take that first step. We are with you.
