The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Tips From Former Smokers® (Tips®) campaign launched on Feb. 5, 2024, with new ads to encourage people to quit smoking. This year, seven new people are featured in the ads sharing their stories about how cigarette smoking and smoking-related diseases have negatively impacted their lives. The campaign will run through Sept. 22, 2024.
The Tips campaign promotes messages and free resources to help adults quit smoking. Year after year, the campaign has proven its effectiveness and has saved lives and money by helping more than one million U.S. adults quit smoking and inspiring millions more to try to quit.
“While cigarette smoking among adults has declined, it remains the leading cause of preventable disease, disability and death in the United States, and some groups continue to be affected more than others,” said Deirdre Lawrence Kittner, PhD, MPH, Director of CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health. “The Tips campaign reaches adults with compelling messages and information to motivate them to quit smoking. It also promotes free resources that can help them quit – no matter who they are or where they live.”
LEARN ABOUT THE NEW TIPS® PARTICIPANTS
EMAIL KYLA.SCOTT@NEBRASKA.GOV TO REGISTER
The Office of Health Disparities at the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services – Division of Public Health is accepting presenter applications for workshops, research presenters and posters which support this years’ conference theme Eliminating Health Disparities in Nebraska. The conference will take place Oct. 16-17, 2024, at the Holthus Conference Center in York, Neb.
The goal of the conference is to share examples of successful programming and services which addresses and reduces health disparities in Nebraska, to include but not limited to:
Deadline to submit presenter applications is May 31, 2024, to dhhs.healthdisparities@nebraska.gov.
VIEW THE PRESENTER APPLICATION
Every year, CounterTobacco.org starts off the year with an update on point-of-sale commercial tobacco control and prevention trends to keep an eye on during the upcoming months. In 2024, advocates can expect news and updates regarding:
2024 Take Down Tobacco Day: National Day of Action
No Limits Nebraska is encouraging schools or teachers working with youth in grades 6-12 to register and host an event for Take Down Tobacco Day: National Day of Action on April 1, 2024.
No Limits Nebraska will provide t-shirts for the first 10 youth groups who register to hold an event in their community. Limit of 10 shirts per group. The deadline to request shirts is Feb. 28, 2024.
View more information about No Limits Nebraska’s Take Down Tobacco: National Day of Action and registering for t-shirts here.
No Limits Youth Leadership Team
No Limits will be building a youth leadership team made up of teens from across the state who are dedicated to fighting Big Tobacco. They will be the guiding force that pushes the movement forward by empowering other Nebraska youth. Would you or someone you know be a good fit? Look for the application and more information on the No Limits website, newsletters, or email Ranae Aspen at ranae.aspen@nebraska.gov.
Newsletter
Want to subscribe to No Limits Nebraska’s quarterly newsletters? Email Ranae Aspen at ranae.aspen@nebraska.gov.
Website
Check No Limits Nebraska’s website for updates and all things youth tobacco prevention in Nebraska! nolimitsnebraska.com
GO TO NO LIMITS NEBRASKA’S WEBSITE
Truth Initiative released a five-page fact sheet overviewing the prevalence of smoking among Hispanic or Latino individuals in the United States based on data from the 2022 Census.
Individuals who are Hispanic or Latino comprise 19.1% (63.7 million) of the U.S. population, according to the 2022 Census. While the latest data on smoking prevalence among adults indicate that 7.7% of Hispanic adults in 2021 smoked cigarettes — lower than the national prevalence of 11.5% — studies have shown smoking prevalence varies significantly between subgroups from specific countries or regions.
Among all Hispanic American adults, those with Puerto Rican origin had the highest smoking prevalence and those with origins from Central or South America had the lowest smoking prevalence in 2019, the most recent year data are available. U.S.-born Hispanic Americans face higher cancer risk compared to those in their country of origin due to the adoption of behaviors such as smoking. E-cigarettes are the most commonly used tobacco product among Hispanic American middle and high school students, who have about the same prevalence of cigarette and e-cigarette use as middle and high school students overall.
READ THE ARTICLE AND DOWNLOAD THE RESOURCE
TikTok accounts promoting “discreet shipping” services that conceal e-cigarettes in cosmetics, candy, and beauty products attempt to circumvent age restrictions on e-cigarette sales as well as parental oversight, according to new Truth Initiative® research published in Tobacco Control. Coupled with separate new Truth Initiative research findings that most (76.3%) of the online vape shops analyzed allow customers to reach the checkout page without proper confirmation that they are above 21 – the age required to purchase tobacco. Combined, these studies highlight just how easy it is for young people to purchase e-cigarettes online and evade policies intended to prevent youth use of nicotine-containing products.
Tammy, age 50, is a member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians tribe and lives in Michigan. A lifelong runner, Tammy always ate right and stayed away from drugs and alcohol.
But for years, Tammy smoked menthol cigarettes. She told herself that smoking was a “side hobby” instead of an addiction. She thought that menthol cigarettes were less harmful than non-menthol cigarettes and that exercising and eating right would keep her safe. However, by the age of 44, Tammy needed open-heart surgery to keep her alive.
Tammy quit smoking after her surgery. It took 6 months into her recovery before she could return to work, but she was determined to move forward. “It hurt, but I kept moving,” she said. “I just had to. It reminded me that I was still alive.”
Today Tammy still runs, but not as far or as fast as she used to. “I miss not being able to run as far as I want to,” she said. She can’t pick up heavy things. She goes to the gym a few times a week if she’s not too tired after work.
She says if she can save even one person from smoking, her experience will have been worth it. “You don’t get a do-over on some things,” Tammy said. “Don’t smoke, because you will lose something that matters to you.”
Nebraska Tobacco Disparities Partnership Meeting
March 13, 2024 | 2:30-3:30 p.m. CT
The Nebraska Tobacco Disparities Partnership is a vibrant network of people and organizations from across the state that focuses on reducing tobacco-related disparities among Nebraska’s diverse populations. The Nebraska Tobacco Disparities Partnership works to provide the information, resources and support that these populations need to prevent youth from using tobacco, and to help current tobacco users quit.
Tobacco Free Lancaster County and OutNebraska will present on TFLC Outreach with the LGBTQIA2S+ Community.
EMAIL RENEE.WADEMAN@NEBRASKA.GOV TO REGISTER
SAVE THE DATE: Nebraska Tobacco Control Strategic Plan Review
Mar. 20, 2024 | 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. CT
Tobacco Free Nebraska and Partners for Insightful Evaluation are hosting an annual stakeholder meeting to review and update the current State Tobacco Control Strategic Plan. The meeting will be virtual and a registration link will be available soon.
SAVE THE DATE: State Tobacco Control Conference
May 15, 2024 | 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Tobacco Free Nebraska is hosting an in-person state tobacco control conference. Location TBD.
Tobacco Disparities Reframing Project
OPEN NOW | Virtual
The CDC Office on Smoking and Health’s training resource to help the tobacco control community use new evidence-based framing and messaging.
Tobacco Cessation and Behavioral Health Workgroup
Apr. 29, 2024 | 2:00 – 3:30 p.m. CT
During these quarterly virtual meetings, individuals will focus on the workgroup’s mission to collaborate, establish projects for the workgroup, share resources and align goals across the state of Nebraska, with the aim of increasing tobacco cessation programming in behavioral health services.
EMAIL KYLA.SCOTT@NEBRASKA.GOV TO REGISTER
SAVE THE DATE: National Conference on Tobacco or Health
Aug. 26-28, 2025 | Chicago, Illinois
The National Conference on Tobacco or Health is one of the largest, long-standing gatherings for top United States tobacco control professionals.
This convening attracts a diversity of attendees committed to best practices and policies to reduce tobacco use, which is the leading preventable cause of disease and death in the United States.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON TOBACCO OR HEALTH
This online order form provides the option to preview, order, download and print free and updated promotional resources such as brochures, window clings, magnets, information sheets and more with information about the Nebraska Tobacco Quitline. Most materials are available in both Spanish and English. Please order or use these free materials as needed.
March
Accredited courses are now available online through the Nebraska Tobacco Quitline, for providers looking to receive CME, CNE or CPE credits. Every year providers in Nebraska support patients quitting tobacco by referring them to the Quitline. The courses offered help providers discuss how cessation can increase quit success and reduce the risks associated with tobacco use, including vaping. Several courses are offered and cover a variety of topics, such as Tobacco Use Disparities for People with Behavioral Health Conditions, Myths About Quitting, Vaping and E-Cigarette Devices, and more.
Additionally, providers can refer patients using the new online web referral option or the updated fax referral form. Go online to access tools, resources, and education modules, plus the web and fax referrals for providers ready to help patients quit, at QuitNow.ne.gov/providers.
Call 1-800-QUIT-NOW or visit QuitNow.ne.gov to reach a trained quit coach, get access to free quit-smoking medication, and make a plan to quit tobacco for good.
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