Stoptober help to quit smoking

A HEALTH centre in Sheffield is urging smokers to attend workshops to help them quit cigarettes as part of a nationwide campaign. Stoptober is a Government drive encouraging people to give up smoking for October, and is being supported by the NHS Walk-In Centre on Broad Lane. Extra support and advice will be on offer, in addition to the centre’s regular free smoking cessation sessions. Stoptober is the first 28-day ‘quit attempt’ of its kind.

It was set up after research found smokers who manage to stop for 28 days are five times more likely to give up permanently, and is backed by Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation. Christian Ellwood, operations manager at the Broad Lane centre, said: “We understand that smoking can be very difficult to beat, therefore providing the right support and guidance can make all the difference to someone considering quitting.”

She added: “We would recommend that all smokers wanting to give up should take part in the Stoptober campaign and, as a service, we’re working to help as many people as possible win their battle to give up smoking for good.” During the workshops, participants are provided with specialist advice on how to quit and share their experiences with others.

HHS Awards $3.6 Million Grant for Obesity Prevention & Tobacco Control

Seattle Children’s Hospital, Public Health – Seattle & King County (PHSKC), and Healthy King County Coalition (HKCC) received the Community Transformation Grant (CTG) which will fund Seattle Children’s Hospital and its partners to work collaboratively with youth, families and communities in South Seattle and South King County on obesity prevention and tobacco control, particularly among youth.

“Parents and schools work hard to give children opportunities to thrive and now, thanks to the partnerships and funding made possible through this grant, families will have more tools to help their families stay healthy and reach their full potential,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. Administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the CTG program is a comprehensive community health improvement initiative launched in 2011 and funded through the Affordable Care Act’s Prevention and Public Health Fund.

CTG funds support public health efforts to reduce chronic diseases, promote healthier lifestyles, reduce health disparities and control health care spending in small communities. Children’s, PHSKC and HKCC will work with local governments, schools, hospitals, low-income housing groups, childcare and youth organizations to implement changes in communities that make healthy choices easier for children and families. Areas of focus include the cities of Auburn, Burien, Des Moines, Kent, North Highline, Renton, SeaTac and Tukwila, and the Seattle neighborhoods of Beacon Hill, Georgetown and South Park. This area has a combined population of more than 479,000.

Huntington health facilities going smoke-free

Marlboro cigarettes online: marlboro.mansblogs.com

The Marshall University Health Sciences campus is going smoke-free. Cabell Huntington Hospital, Marshall Health and the Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center have agreed to prohibit tobacco use on their property beginning Nov. 15, the day of the Great American Smokeout. Smoking has been banned inside the hospital and medical center for years, but designated smoking areas were created last year as the first step of a two-step process to eliminate tobacco use on the medical center campus.

Those designated areas will be removed, and tobacco use will be prohibited anywhere on the hospital and medical center properties. Dr. Joseph Shapiro, dean of Marshall's medical school, says the policy will provide a safer environment for visitors and employees, and demonstrate a commitment to promoting the health of the community.

Live Healthy, Live Well launches Tobacco Cessation Program

Live Healthy, Live Well has launched a Keep Trying Tobacco Cessation program at John Knox Village East in Higginsville from 6-8 p.m. through the end of October. The program is designed to support efforts to live tobacco free through tobacco cessation and prevention classes. For the past two years, Live Healthy, Live Well partners have been instrumental in crafting plans to create policies, systems and environments that make living healthier easier.

Walking trails, sidewalk development, increased physical activity and healthy foods in schools—and tobacco cessation and prevention—are among these initiatives. Program partners include Health Care Collaborative (HCC) of Rural Missouri, University of Missouri Extension and Lafayette County Health Department.

North State Voices: End to smoking brings hope

A few weeks ago I made a very big decision. I decided to quit smoking, and man have I had a hard time. There have been a few times I've had to quit smoking because I had no choice, like the whole year I stopped due to the fact that I was pregnant and breast feeding. It was hard to deal with, but I did it because that was the only option. This time it's harder. There have been obvious hits to my health that I am noticing, and being that I just turned 23-years-old on the 23rd of September, I became alarmed enough to stop cold turkey.

Three weeks in and I've managed to irritate just about everyone that I know. Controlling the urges to run to the store and buy a pack that first week was excruciating in a number of ways. I spent a lot of time in my room reading just to make sure my mind spent little time thinking of anything else. If one good thing came out of it, I read the "Hunger Games" series during a very rare three days without my husband and daughter where they spent a few days in Oregon with his brother.

That probably couldn't have come at a better time. Speaking of my husband, he's about as happy as a hyena with the fact that I've quit smoking. He was once a smoker, who hasn't smoked in a few years, and he loves to ask me when I'm going to quit. As a smoker, that question irritates me, whereas to non-smokers it seems like a reasonable question. Other than my dad, he's been the only person who has ever actually stayed on my case about my smoking.

Wiz Khalifa changes smoking habits for baby

Rappper Wiz Khalifa has stopped smoking marijuana at home for his unborn baby because the habit irritates his girlfriend Amber Rose. The 25-year-old, who was arrested twice this year for possession of the herbal high, has agreed to indulge his habit away from his lover Rose, reported Contactmusic. "I smoke outside instead of inside.

Everything is all about smells, man. If the smell irritates her, then it gotta go," he said. Khalifa, whose real name is Cameron Jibril Thomaz, also said that he and the model know the gender of their unborn baby but do not want to tell anyone yet. "I do know, but then (Amber) told us not to say yet. We'll wait until she's ready."

Fenwick panel considers beach smoking ban

The Environmental Committee has put the finishing touches on a draft ordinance that would prohibit smoking on town beaches. Among the items up for discussion are enforcement, whether there should be a designated area for smokers and signage. After researching similar initiatives across the country, committee member Bill Weistling said people are more likely to cooperate when signs are positive. Instead of using “no smoking,” people better respond to “breathe easy” or “enjoy free air.”

The committee also discussed where signs would be placed, with arguments made for the back of lifeguard stands, beach entrances and dune crossings. If signs are posted on lifeguard stands, it doesn’t mean the beach patrol will enforce the rule; signs will encourage beachgoers to report violations to the Fenwick Island Police Department. “If you want to have signs, there should be a reason for it,” committee member Buzz Henifin said. “Lifeguards aren’t responsible for enforcement calls. People should call the police.”

 Committee members would like the ban to include cigars, cigarettes and tobacco products on the beach and possibly town parks. Committee Chairman Marry Ellen Langan said she doesn’t expect much resistance from residents. “The majority of residents are seniors and non-smokers,” she said. “The main target of this is our tourists.” Committee members said they’d like to see a designated smoking area near the dunes and signs posted year-round. A draft of the ordinance is scheduled to be presented to the Town Council later this month. “I don’t know if there’s going to be any problems from the council,” Langan said. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”