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Quitting smoking

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Giving up smoking is easier said than done. Seventy percent of America's 44.5 million adult smokers want to quit. Forty percent try in a given year. Only about 5 percent succeed.

They can get help. An independent panel convened by the National Institutes of Health says quit-smoking programs do work. It says they work better together, and could do even more good if they are targeted to specific groups.

David Ransohoff of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill chaired the panel:

"Many cities and states have implemented effective policies to reduce tobacco use. These models should be evaluated for widespread adoption." (eight seconds)

The programs include nicotine replacement therapy, counseling, and quitlines such as the National Quitline, 1-800-QUIT-NOW.

The panel's report is not a policy statement for the federal government.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: June 19, 2006

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