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Blog added to quitting arsenal

By DAVE RICHARDSON Chronicle Staff Writer

Tobacco addicts seeking help quitting their habit now have a new tool at their disposal.


 The Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program - run by the state Department of Public Health and Human Services - already operates the Montana Quit Line, a telephone support service that offers hopeful quitters free counseling and nicotine-replacement therapies like patches and nicotine gum.

Now, the program is offering an on-line Internet blog to encourage people trying to kick cigarettes and spit tobacco to share their stories, gain insights and offer each other support.

“Every year around this time we get a lot of new callers, because people are making New Year's resolutions to quit,” said Linda Lee, the program's supervisor. “This year someone came up with the idea to do something more high-tech. Since so many people use the Internet, we thought the blog would be a good idea.”

Because nicotine is highly addictive - more addictive than some drugs - Lee said the more support people get when they try to quit smoking or chewing, the better.

“Smokers and chewers need all the help they can get,” Lee said. “Studies show that if people have support from their families, their friends or from support groups, their chances of quitting successfully go way up.”

In fact, she said, tobacco users who take advantage of the program's services are seven to 10 times more likely to quit for good than if they try to quit on their own.

In the three years the Quit Line has been available, more than 15,000 Montana tobacco users have called, she said.

Spit tobacco is just as tough to kick as smoking, said Heather Beck, a smoking-cessation specialist with the program. And it's a big problem in Montana, where the spit-tobacco use rate is twice the national average, she said.

“Nearly half of Montana's spit tobacco users say they want to quit,” Beck said in a written news release. “This blog and the Quit Line are here to help spit tobacco users accomplish their goal.”

The blog can be accessed at www.IQuit08.com. The Quite Line can be reached at 1-800-QUIT-NOW.

Dave Richardson is at 582-2648, or drichardson@dailychronicle.com

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