SOME WILL PUT OUT SMOKES TODAY

Dana McDonough, 19, a biology and Spanish major at Southeast Missouri State University, started smoking three years ago.

McDonough and millions of other smokers are being given the incentive to kick the habit today during the American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout.

The nicotine-dependent are asked to give up their cigarettes, cigars, pipes, chewing tobacco and other sources for just one day. If they can go a day without nicotine, they can probably give it up entirely, promoters say.

"I honestly can't tell you why I started; it was just something I picked up," said McDonough of Cape Girardeau. She and her boyfriend are going to try as a couple to give up their cigarettes.

"I think we'll make it, hopefully. Neither one of us smokes that much, so it shouldn't be that hard to accomplish," she said. "I quit for three months last year. It didn't last."

McDonough said her strategies include "probably just gum and hiding the cigarettes and things like that."

The American Cancer Society has delivered information on smoking cessation to worksites throughout the area, and many efforts are being concentrated on discouraging youngsters from picking up the habit, said Terri Hirsch, local Smokeout coordinator.

"The number of Missouri's high-school seniors who smoke has risen 4 percent in the last three years, and the smoking rate for Missourians who hadn't finished high school increased from 29 percent to 42 percent between 1986 and 1991," said Hirsch. "A lot of our activities locally are focused on educating youth as well as adult smokers," Hirsch said.

The American Cancer Society says more than 434,000 Americans are killed by cigarettes every year and tobacco-related health costs add up to more than $65 billion annually. In Missouri, 10,000 die a year of tobacco-related illnesses. the society says. In 1990, one out of every five deaths in Missouri resulted from smoking-related diseases.

Smokeout parties have been planned for fifth- and sixth-graders at area schools, and preschoolers will get a visit from "Mr. Butts," a costumed character who spreads the word about the dangers of smoking.

Tonight at 8, "Ask Your Doctor" will present a "Smokeout Special" featuring Dr. Richard A. Martin, a Cape Girardeau otolaryngologist. The program airs on cable channel 5.

At Southeast Missouri Hospital, newborns will receive "Born a Nonsmoker" T-shirts from the American Cancer Society, said Maggie Friend, promotions and marketing coordinator for the hospital and a longtime Smokeout volunteer. Friend gave up smoking seven years ago.

"Most of us began smoking early in life without benefit of all the education available today, but that doesn't mean we have to be tied to that decision for life," she said. "Today's a great day to take the first step toward quitting. Think of it as your second chance."

At St. Francis Medical Center, information on how to quit smoking will be distributed for employees, patients and visitors, said nurse Judy Stricker, who is heading up the hospital's campaign.

"We'll also have survival kits" for people who are trying to quit, Stricker said. Candy and gum, Slinkys and bubble-blowing equipment will be available to help keep deprived smokers busy, she said.

Stricker quit smoking 13 years ago, but it wasn't easy. "I don't know how many times I tried before I made it," she said. "I wanted my husband (Bob) to quit. I enjoyed it, and I didn't want to quit."

The Strickers finally teamed up and made it.

"At this point it's easy not to smoke. For a long time after I quit there was a temptation to smoke. If you can fight that and resist that, the urge to smoke will disappear," she said.

At Southeast Missouri State University, a variety of information is being made available to students and staff, said Jenny Brune, wellness coordinator for the university.

GREAT AMERICAN SMOKEOUT

Millions of smokers have the chance to kick the habit today during the American Cancer Society's "Great American Smokeout." the Amercian Cancer Society offers the following tips:

* Stick with your strategy. Whether you go "cold turkey" or cut down gradually, stick with the program that feels right for you.

* Know your triggers, whethery they-re stress, depression or boredom. When those feelings hit, go for a walk, do some deep breathing or take a stress break.

* Flush out toxins. Nicotine is eliminated from the body through the kidneys, so decrease your cravings for nicotine by drinking six to eight glasses of water a day.

* Destroy all traces of your bad habit. Get rid of cigarettes, ash trays, matches, sighters and the like at work and at home.

* Occupy your hands with a pen, a worry stone or beads. Anything but a cigarette!.