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November
2011
In
This Issue:
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Message
from the President: 'Tis the Season
 November is a time for family and
friends to celebrate and give thanks for life's
blessings and opportunities. For many of us in
public health, it also marks the start of
"quitting season." Beginning with the Great
American Smokeout and lasting through the
beginning of the New Year, smokers around the
country are taking one of the most important steps
toward living longer, healthier lives. Recent CDC
data show that more than two-thirds of American
smokers want to quit smoking, but only six percent
quit successfully. Tobacco use is one of the
toughest addictions to beat, and support is
essential. Friends and loved ones who are
struggling need the support of family, friends and
coworkers along the tough road to quitting for
good. With the Surgeon General warning smokers
that even one cigarette can damage the body, let's
make sure we work tenaciously with loved ones to
help them succeed. Our support could save their
lives, and that is indeed something to be thankful
for.
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Reason
to be Thankful: "Blueprint to
Quit" Launches at Walmart Stores
Nationwide
Quitting
smoking just got more convenient with a new
national program being promoted at Walmart stores
across the country. GlaxoSmithKline launched
Blueprint to Quit on
November 15 to help equip the 34 million smokers
who shop at Walmart stores nationwide with the
tools they need to beat nicotine addiction for
good. The program offers discounted online
behavioral support and nicotine replacement
therapies as part of a comprehensive plan for
people who smoke and want to quit, with
evidence-based tools to increase their chances of
success. Legacy's President and
CEO, Cheryl G. Healton, is one of three "Wellness
Team of Experts" who provide smoking cessation
advice. Dr. Healton shares her own personal story
of struggling to quit smoking through Walmart's
Blueprint to Quit web page and in-store displays.
"In the weeks between the Great American Smokeout
this week and New Year's Day when so many smokers
resolve to try quitting
again, Blueprint to
Quit will be there for smokers,
in their own local Walmart stores and online with
the tools they need -- from trained pharmacists to
discounted NRTs and behavioral support -- to help
them from start to finish," said Dr. Healton.
The
Blueprint to Quit
comprehensive quit-smoking program
is a two-part plan that helps smokers address both
the physical and psychological aspects associated
with quitting smoking. The first part of the
program involves using an NRT stop-smoking aid to
address the physical cravings and withdrawal
symptoms, and the second part uses a behavioral
support program (BSP) on QuitNet to facilitate the
changing of behaviors commonly associated with
smoking.
For more information, please visit
www.walmart.com/blueprinttoquit.
Disclaimers
accompanying Dr. Healton's appearances in the
campaign make it clear that, while she
endorses the use of evidence-based online
smoking cessation counseling and FDA-approved NRT
products, she does not endorse specific brands. In
addition, no corporate funding or other
consideration was provided to Dr. Healton or
Legacy in connection with the campaign, other than
the minimum SAG-mandated
payment.
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BODIES...The
Exhibition Asks Guests to Kick Addiction
for the Great American Smokeout
In
support of the 35th Great American Smokeout,
BODIES...The
Exhibition is teaming up
with Legacy to educate and encourage exhibit
visitors to stop smoking. On Thursday, November
17, visitors who dropped a full or partial pack of
cigarettes into the "commit to quit" box at the
Luxor  Hotel in Las Vegas
received a two-for-one discount to The Exhibition.
Approximately 5,000 guests have already decided to
get healthy and throw away cigarettes at The
Exhibition during the last three years.
Inside
The Exhibition, visitors can find information from
Legacy that highlights the consequences that
smoking can have on the body. Particularly, the
respiratory room offers a shocking lesson on the
importance of smoking prevention, showcasing
healthy human lungs alongside black lungs that
have been ravaged by smoking, which guests can
actually hold in their hands. On the flip side,
visitors can also witness the complexity and
beauty of the human body through real organs and
full-body specimens. For more information
about the exhibition, visit http://www.bodiestheexhibition.com/.
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Buffalo
Bills: Winning On and Off the Field
This
2011 NFL season, Legacy has teamed up
with the Buffalo Bills to help spread the
life-saving messages of
EX.
The
partnership aims to work
alongside a staple of life in Buffalo, N.Y. - the
fabled Buffalo Bills, to help its fans get
off the sidelines and tackle tobacco. Sports
fans and smoking are often connected, and in a
survey conducted by Legacy in 2009, 63 percent of
sports fans identified themselves as current or
former smokers; 76 percent of those current or
former smokers said they had smoked while watching
or attending sporting events. These results show
that fans, as a group, are in need of programs to
help them quit smoking.
Earlier
this season, the Bills eliminated smoking from
their home field, Ralph Wilson Stadium, giving
fans a chance to enjoy the on-field action without
suffering from the negative off-field health
effects of tobacco. In celebration of
Lung Cancer Awareness Month this November, Bills
wide receiver Donald Jones stepped out to share
his story and support the quit smoking
initiative. Jones' grandfather has a
smoking-related lung disease, and Donald played a
role in helping his grandfather quit smoking a few
years ago. "It is important to help fans have
access to the necessary resources to help them
quit smoking," said Jones. "The online quit
smoking program is a great way for fans to get the
assistance they need to make a positive change in
their lives and become healthier. If I had this
program available to me when I was trying to help
my grandfather, maybe I wouldn't have had to hide
his cigarettes from him all the
time!"
Read more about what
Legacy is doing in Buffalo.
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Cigar
Use High Among Maryland Teens
On
Nov. 17, the Maryland Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene (DHMH) released data showing that
the use of cigars has increased among Maryland
youth, even while the use of cigarettes has
declined substantially. The Maryland
data show:
- Youth are shifting to cigars. While
cigarette smoking has decreased among high
school youth by nearly 40 percent since 2000,
cigar use among high school students has
increased by more than 11 percent during that
same time period.
- Youth are attracted to flavored cigars. More
than 76 percent of underage cigar smokers in
high school smoke these flavored cigars.
Available cigar flavors now include strawberry,
watermelon, grape, peach, vanilla, chocolate and
wine. Meanwhile, candy and fruit-flavored
cigarettes are not permitted to be sold.
- Cigars can be inexpensive. Small cigars can
be purchased individually, sometimes for less
than $.70, less than a candy bar or ice cream
cone. In contrast, cigarettes cannot be
purchased individually, and a pack generally
costs $5.00 to $7.00 or more.
Next
month, the Department is launching a public health
campaign with a new website, www.thecigartrap.com, to
highlight the dangers of cheap, flavored cigars.
Ads will appear on billboards, transit mediums as
well as print and radio media outlets.
For
more information, read the full press release
here.
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Spanish
Speaking Smokers Get the Help They Need
Nearly
5.1 million Hispanic adults in the United States
smoke, and smoking takes a deadly toll Lung cancer
is the leading cancer killer among Hispanic men
and the second-leading cancer killer among
Hispanic women. Just in time for Lung Cancer
Awareness Month, Legacy is expanding the
"Bi-Lingual Education Program on Lung Cancer
Scree ning and Smoking Cessation,"
through a new educational grant from Genentech, A
Member of the Roche Group.
Legacy
will print and disseminate thousands of copies of
the Spanish/English EX "fotonovela" to support
cessation among Spanish-speaking individuals as
well as a Spanish language fact sheet to guide
patient/physician discussion on whether smokers
and former smokers should be screened for lung
cancer.
For
more information about this grant, contact Robin
Kornhaber at rkornhaber@legacyforhealth.org,
or Amy Engel at aengel@legacyforhealth.org.
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Trivia
Night Draws Supports to Beat Tobacco
On
November 15, 2011 Legacy's New York City Young
Professionals Committee hosted a Fall Trivia Night
at the King's Head Tavern near Union Square.
Nearly 125 young adults enjoyed an evening of
challenging rounds of trivia and great prizes, all
in an effort to raise funds and awareness about
Legacy's life-saving work in tobacco prevention
and smoking cessation.
For
more information on Legacy's Young Professionals
Committee, please e-mail Samantha Dodds at
sdodds@legacyforhealth.org or
visit www.legacyforhealth.org/yp.
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We
Are Grateful for Your Support
As 2011 winds down, we want to
take this opportunity to thank all those who have
made donations to support Legacy's work. This
support is more important than ever to Legacy's
ability to offer vital programs on both the
national and local levels.
Every donation makes a difference in our
work and can help save so many lives.
If you have
not had a chance, here are some of the many ways
you can help:
·
Make
a tax-deductible gift to Legacy -visit
http://www.legacyforhealth.org/ and click on Donate. You
can even decide to make gifts in honor of loved
ones as your holiday gifts to them.
·
If
your company has a matching gift program
you can double the size of your donation by asking
them to match your gift!
·
Make
a gift of appreciated stock or securities.
Call Anthony O'Toole at
202-454-5557.
·
If
you are age 70 ½ or older, talk to your financial
advisor about making a charitable donation from
your IRA to Legacy - it is a great way to
support Legacy and take advantage of an attractive
donation that may not be available after
2011.
·
Shop
online at GoodShop.com, selecting "American
Legacy Foundation" as your charity of choice and
Legacy will receive a percentage of every
purchase.
·
If
you are a federal employee, choose "American
Legacy Foundation, CFC # 19203" as the charity you
want to support in this year's Combined Federal
Campaign.
Thank you,
again, for all you do to help Legacy in its
life-saving work.
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