Newswise — NEW YORK -- On November 19, The Great American Smokeout will make its 39th annual drive to get Americans to quit smoking-- the number one cause of preventable deaths in the U.S. Once again, The Great American Smokeout and Quit and Stay Quit Monday (QSQM) will be working to bring that number down.
Seven out of 10 American smokers say they would like to quit and almost half have made quit attempts. Clearly smokers want to quit and are trying to quit, but it’s difficult for them to stop for good. So the question is: What can help them succeed this time? Growing evidence shows starting each week with a little extra support may be the key to quitting and staying quit.
Quit & Stay Quit Monday, a program of the nonprofit Monday Campaigns, uses weekly messaging and the latest public health research to help quitters on the first day of every week. Individuals can join QSQM on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest to access free information and resources to help make their quit successful. Organizations and groups can also use free QSQM posters, email and social media tips, and other materials to help their clients through the quitting process. "Monday is the day people are open to starting healthy behaviors and specifically to quitting smoking," said Morgan Johnson, MPH and program development and research director at The Monday Campaigns. A study co-authored by Johnson found that more people conduct Google searches about quitting smoking on Monday than any other day of the week -- in seven different languages worldwide. "Tapping into this collective mindset can impact programs designed to encourage quitting," said Joanna E. Cohen, also a co-author of the study and director of the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health Institute for Global Tobacco Control. "Campaigns for people to quit may benefit from shifting to weekly cues to increase the number of quit attempts participants make each year." "Mondays can help individuals, organizations and groups leverage the start of each week to keep moving in the right direction," said Sid Lerner, founder and chairman of The Monday Campaigns, which supports research and public health campaigns based on the Monday effect. "Our research indicates there are weekly rhythms that seem to magically drive people to seek a fresh start on Mondays. And we're with them 52/12." For more information, visit www.quitmonday.org. About Q&SQ Monday and The Monday CampaignsQuit and Stay Quit Monday is a program of The Monday Campaigns, a nonprofit working in association with The Lerner Centers for Public Health Promotion at Johns Hopkins, Columbia and Syracuse universities. These programs dedicate the first day of every week to health, and support a global movement of individuals and organizations committed to public health and ending preventable diseases. [1] www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/[1] www.archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1761921
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