Want to kick the habit? Alabama residents get free help to quit smoking

MOBILE, Al.
Trying to kick the tobacco habit? Alabama’s public health department is offering free assistance through a telephone-based tobacco cessation service that provides counseling and four weeks of nicotine patches for those who qualify, officials said.
The Alabama Tobacco Quitline can be accessed by calling 1-800-QUIT-NOW or online at www.alabamaquitnow.com.
Phone counselors are available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Calls placed after hours or on weekends or holidays are returned on the next business day.
Studies have shown that people are twice as likely to quit if they receive counseling along with patches, said Adrienne Tricksey, the Alabama Department of Public Health’s tobacco control coordinator for Mobile County.
Trained counselors from the telephone hotline work one-on-one with callers to help them create a specific plan to stop smoking, said Megan Newsom, a Health Department project coordinator. A Spanish-speaking counselor also is available; translator services will serve those who speak other languages.
Tricksey said that giving up tobacco is one of the most important things an individual can do to improve both personal and family health.
“Ridding your home of tobacco will also help protect your children, family and friends from exposure to secondhand smoke, that can cause immediate harm to the nonsmokers who breathe it,” Tricksey said.
The Mobile County Health Department got a multi-million dollar grant last year to raise awareness about the dangers of second-hand smoke. Mobile’s City Council is expected to discuss a smoking ordinance in mid-January, Newsom said.
By quitting, smokers can lower their risk for lung and other cancers, heart disease, stroke and reduce the chances of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), one of the leading causes of death in the United States, health officials said.
About 7,500 Alabama residents die from smoking-related causes and about 820 adult nonsmokers die from secondhand smoke exposure, Health Department statistics show. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for every person that dies, 20 people are suffering from at least one serious tobacco-related illness.