It’s quitting time: Thousands expected to give up cigarettes for Great American Smokeout
By Terry Rindfleisch of the Tribune staff
In 1977 when the American Cancer Society launched its first Great American Smokeout, cancer society officials said they could not have guessed it would help spark a movement that would lead to smoke-free laws from California to New York City.
For this year’s smokeout on Thursday, the cancer society is calling on smokers to go smoke-free for the day, and make a serious attempt to quit for good. Cancer society officials expect more than 200,000 Wisconsin residents to quit for the day.
A national survey after the 2003 Smokeout found more than 8.3 million of the estimated 46.2 million smokers nationwide (18 percent) took part in the annual event, with nearly 2.3 million (5 percent) giving up completely for the day.
“The Great American Smokeout started a movement that created awarness and encouraged people to think about quitting smoking for good, but starting with one day at a time,” said Al Bliss, health educator for the La Crosse County Health Department. “It’s been successful in raising awareness.”
“There’s no question smokers know they need to quit, and this is a day they can get a lot of support,” he said. “At the same time it may not be the day to quit if one is not ready.”
Despite the awareness about smoking and its health risks, smoking is still the single most preventable cause of death in our society 27 years later. This year, it will cause 87 percent of the lung cancer cases in Wisconsin -- a cancer that will kill more than 2,800 Wisconsin residents in 2004.
Research shows smokers are most successful in kicking the habit when they have some means of support, such as nicotine replacement products, counseling, prescription medicine to lessen cravings, guide books and the encouragement of friends and family members.
Despite that, only about 1 in 7 current smokers reports having tried any of the recommended therapies during their last quit attempt. Only about 5 percent of every day smokers are able to quit and maintain abstinence for a year, pointing to the importance of repeated attempts, multiple approaches and ongoing support, say cancer society officials.
“The Great American Smokeout is a day to give smokers the experience to quit for a day,” said Paula Silha, health educator for the La Crosse County Health Department.
“Even if it’s only for a day, they experience not smoking, and it may take several times before they quit for good,” she said. “Nicotine is a powerful addiction, and if you make it through one day, you may need help. But use the day as a learning experience.”
Silha said too many smokers take quitting lightly and don’t have a plan or strategy to help them quit for good.
“Be serious about quitting and how you’re going to prepare for quitting,” Silha said. “Most of all, plan to be successful.”
Every year, smokers across the nation take part in the American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout by smoking less or quitting for the day on the third Thursday of November. The event challenges people to stop using tobacco and raises awareness of the many effective ways to quit for good.
The idea for the Great American Smokeout grew out of a 1974 event.
Lynn R. Smith, editor of the Moticello Times in Minnesota, spearheaded the state's first D-Day, or Don't Smoke Day. The idea may have been inspired by Arthur P. Mullaney of Randolph, Mass., who three years earlier had asked people to give up cigarettes for a day and donate the money they would have spent on cigarettes to a high school scholarship fund.
The idea caught on, and on November 18, 1976, the California Division of the American Cancer Society successfully prompted nearly one million smokers to quit for the day. That California event marked the first smokeout, and the cancer society took it nationwide in 1977.
“The smokeout is a great day to think about quitting,” Silha said.
Terry Rindfleisch can be reached at trindfleisch@lacrossetribune.com or (608) 791-8227.
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