Missouri Foundation for Health promotes two free stop-smoking programs

The Missouri Foundation for Health is promoting two free programs offered to those trying to quit smoking, and it's focusing on Southeast Missouri, according to foundation program officer Matt Kuhlenbeck.

"Southeast Missouri has far and away the highest concentration of tobacco use in the state," Kuhlenbeck said.

A 2007 telephone survey organized by both the foundation for health and Missouri Department of Health found that 23.2 percent of all Missourians older than 18 smoke.

The majority of counties where smoking was prevalent among 30.8 to 40.8 percent of the survey respondents were in the southeast region of the state, according to Kuhlenbeck.

The study also found that 72.99 percent of smokers who live in Cape Girardeau County expressed a desire to quit over the next six months.

Kuhlenbeck said the Missouri Foundation for Health is promoting the toll free quit line, 800-784-8669, as well as its website, becomeanex.org, to make sure people know there are free programs available.

"The resources are there, people just aren't using them -- utilization is way down," he said.

The website has been up and running for about a year, and the quit line about five years.

Both offer a private, individualized approach to quitting, beginning with assessing each case to determine what factors can trigger someone's desire to smoke, such as social situations or drinking.

Once those triggers are identified, counselors will offer alternatives, as well as help people understand their smoking addiction and the withdrawal process, Kuhlenbeck said.

"We help them understand all the things out there. The patch may not work for some folks," he said.

The physical addiction usually presents the biggest challenge, Kuhlenbeck said.

The website can also provide a social network for people in the same community who are trying to quit and running into similar obstacles, Kuhlenbeck said.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

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