February 3, 2019
By:
The Tennessee Department of Health joins partners from across the state including the DeKalb Prevention Coalition in celebrating the fourth annual Tennessee Quit Week February 4-8 renewing the call to each and every Tennessean to be part of our state’s celebration of Tennesseans who have quit using tobacco products and inspire more people to join them.
“The impacts of tobacco and nicotine addiction in Tennessee go beyond the damage done to the health, quality of life and incomes of people using these products, most of whom got addicted as youth,” said Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH. “We lose 30 precious people a day in Tennessee to tobacco use and beyond these tragic early deaths, it costs our state billions of dollars each year in lost productivity and health care costs, serious and preventable consequences that hurt the prosperity of our state and those who live and work here. We want to increase our partnerships across the public and private sectors to educate people on the harms of tobacco use and how we can work together to help people improve their health and their lives by beating nicotine addiction.”
Tennessee Quit Week raises awareness of the Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine and other free resources available to help Tennesseans quit smoking and/or using other tobacco products. These proven, effective services can double a tobacco user’s chances of quitting.
Quitting smoking greatly reduces the risk of developing smoking-related diseases. Tennesseans who smoke and are ready to quit can call the Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine, use a web-based program or attend in-person counseling services, and may receive free FDA-approved nicotine replacement therapy. These services are provided at no charge to participants. Call the Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine at 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669) to talk with a counselor who will help you create a quit plan. For more information and resources or to enroll online visit www.tnquitline.org.
Along with counseling, partnering with health professionals is a proven way to help smokers quit for good. People who work with health care professionals to quit smoking are ultimately more successful in quitting tobacco use and report higher satisfaction with overall health care received compared to untreated tobacco users, according to the U.S. Public Health Service.