Answers About Tobacco

TFN E-News Update / July 2023

ARTICLE: E-cigarette Unit Sales by Product and Flavor Type, and Top-Selling Brands, United States, 2020–2022

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in collaboration with the CDC Foundation and Truth Initiative, released an article in the journal, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) that shows U.S. e-cigarette sales climbed during 2020-2022, with increases in the number of brands and sales of disposable devices and flavors popular among youth.

  • Overall, e-cigarette unit sales increased by nearly 47% during the study period.
  • Monitoring e-cigarette sales can inform strategies to prevent youth tobacco use, including potentially proposing restrictions on flavored tobacco products.

To assess trends in unit sales of e-cigarettes in the United States, by product and flavor, and determine the top-selling brands, CDC Foundation, Truth Initiative, and CDC analyzed retail scanner data from January 26, 2020–December 25, 2022.

Read the article


NEW: Tobacco Free Nebraska Releases Tobacco and Behavioral Health: Break the Cycle to Improve Treatment Outcomes Infographic

Tobacco Free Nebraska is proud to announce the release of a new infographic, Tobacco and Behavioral Health: Break the Cycle to Improve Treatment Outcomes. This resource provides information on how tobacco use affects those with mental health conditions and best practices for tobacco treatment in behavioral health facilities.

This infographic is available on the Tobacco Free Nebraska website here under the “Nebraska Infographics” menu, or the infographic can be viewed and downloaded directly here.

View and download the infographic


CDC Releases New Resource: Schools Supporting Students to Quit Tobacco Use as an Alternative to Suspension: Lessons from the Field

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention released a new resource “Schools Supporting Students to Quit Tobacco Use as an Alternative to Suspension: Lessons from the Field,” which provides resources and lessons from the field showcasing school districts across the country that are implementing tobacco prevention programs as an alternative to out-of-school suspension for students who violate tobacco-free policies.

View and download the resource


ARTICLE: “Tobacco-free nicotine” labels for e-cigarettes increase purchase intentions among teen e-cigarette users

Many e-cigarettes are now advertised as containing “tobacco-free nicotine” because they contain synthetic nicotine rather than nicotine derived from tobacco. A new study published in Tobacco Control finds that labeling e-cigarettes with “tobacco-free nicotine” increases teenage e-cigarette users’ intentions to purchase e-cigarettes. The study also finds that most U.S. teens don’t know where the nicotine in e-cigarettes comes from. Findings underscore the need for tighter regulation on synthetic nicotine marketing claims.

Read the article from Truth Initiative


NEW: Tobacco Free Nebraska Releases New, FREE Youth E-Cigarette Cessation Materials

Tobacco Free Nebraska has released new, FREE youth vaping materials, a brochure and an e-newsletter insert, that are available to order on the Nebraska Tobacco Quitline Order Form and for download on the Nebraska Tobacco Quitline Downloadable Resources page. These free materials bring focus to the dangers of using e-cigarettes and resources available to help youth quit.

  • Clear the Air: Your Path to a Tobacco-Free Future brochure is targeted toward youth and provides information on the harms of vaping/aerosol and some resources that can help with quitting, such as the Quitline. The brochure is available for order and download for healthcare facilities, schools and any other group that provides youth services and wants to help youth quit e-cigarettes.
  • The e-newsletter insert, Clear the Air: Talk to Teens About Quitting Vaping, is targeted toward parents and teachers and provides an outline for how they can talk to youth about quitting e-cigarettes. This resource is intended to be used in digital newsletters, and it is only available for download. Schools can use this resource in newsletters for parents and teachers to provide guidance on talking to youth about quitting e-cigarettes.
Brochure
E-Newsletter Insert

Order and download the materials


Apply for the Truth Initiative Tobacco/Vape-Free College Program

The Truth Initiative Tobacco/Vape-Free College Program is offering grants of up to $20,000 to colleges and universities to support the adoption and implementation of a 100% tobacco/vape-free policy. Grantees of the Tobacco/Vape-Free College Program receive guidance through webinars, an in-person training and one-on-one consultations throughout the grant period. Since 2015, the Tobacco/Vape-Free College Program has provided funding to more than 220 colleges, universities and college systems to advocate for and adopt a 100% tobacco-free policy.

Colleges and universities that have smoke- or tobacco-free policies that do not include e-cigarettes may still apply. To combat the vaping public health crisis, Truth Initiative is offering grants of up to $10,000 to higher education institutions to strengthen their 100% smoke or tobacco-free policies by adding e-cigarettes.

Register for an informational webinar on August 22 at 2 pm CT to learn more about the Tobacco/Vape-Free College Grant Program.

The following Nebraska schools are eligible for the $20,000 grant:

  • Bryan College of Health Sciences
  • Southeast Community College
  • Little Priest Tribal College
  • Nebraska Indian Community College
  • Chadron State College
  • Concordia University-Nebraska
  • Doane University
  • Hastings College
  • Midland University
  • Nebraska Wesleyan University
  • University of Nebraska at Kearney
  • University of Nebraska at Omaha
  • Wayne State College

Get more information on how to apply

 


Becky H.

Becky was a high school exchange student living in Germany when she started smoking cigarettes. She thought smoking helped her fit in with her host family members and new friends. Over time, she discovered she had trouble quitting.

At age 45, Becky was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)—a serious lung disease that gradually makes it harder and harder to breathe. She continued smoking cigarettes after her diagnosis. Then, as she was leaving work one evening in 2012, Becky was unable to catch her breath. She tried not to panic, but knew she needed immediate medical help. Becky remembered waking up in the hospital’s intensive care unit and facing the fight of her life.

Becky needed continuous oxygen to help her breathe, but she was grateful that she quit smoking. She helped educate others about the dangers of smoking and encouraged people who smoke to quit. Becky said, “Whenever I had a craving, I said to myself, ‘I choose not to smoke today.’” Becky died in 2023 at age 62 from COPD.

Tobacco Free Nebraska is grateful to Becky for sharing her story and sends the most heartfelt sympathies to her friends and family during this time.

Read more about Becky’s story

 

Nebraska Statewide Tobacco Control Conference
August 9, 2023 | Lincoln, NE
Tobacco Free Nebraska is hosting a statewide tobacco control conference.The event will be held on August 9, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT, at the 100% smoke-free Country Inn and Suites, 5353 N. 27th St., Lincoln, Nebraska.

Sessions will include:

  • Tobacco Use Among Our Youth: What Do We Do? – Maggie Mahoney and Randi Tolstyk, CDC Office on Smoking and Health
  • Coalition and Capacity Building Training – Vincent Francisco, University of Kansas Center for Community Health and Development
  • Topic-Centered Networking – Facilitated by the Tobacco Free Nebraska Team
  • An Overview of Behavioral Health in Nebraska – Rebekah Willoughby, NE DHHS Division of Behavioral Health
  • An Update on Nebraska Tobacco Control Surveillance and Evaluation – Cole Boyle, Partners for Insightful Evaluation

Register

SAVE THE DATE: National Conference on Tobacco or Health
August 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—the leading preventable cause of disease and death in the United States.
WEBINAR: Tobacco Use and Cessation: Opportunities to Drive Improvements in Behavioral Health Care
August 9, 2023 | 3:00 – 4:30 PM ET
The Association of Addiction Professionals (NAADAC) is offering a webinar presented by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Senior Medical Officer, Dr. Brenna Van Frank, who will discuss systems-level strategies that can be implemented to increase clinical cessation interventions and population-level strategies that promote smoking cessation – both key factors in advancing health equity. This webinar offers free CEs and tackles why it is vital to establish programs to help patients access and utilize cessation support.
 
 
National Diabetes Prevention Program Lifestyle Coach Training
OPEN NOW | Virtual

Join this training to learn how to be a lifestyle coach for the National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP). The role of the Lifestyle coach is to lead the lifestyle change program sessions and support and encourage participants.

There are no pre-requisites for being a NDPP lifestyle coach and this is a great opportunity for health educators, community health workers, dieticians, or others who work with patients who have prediabetes.

Sessions will take place on:

  • August 2, 2023; 10 AM-3 PM CT
  • August 3, 2023; 10 AM-3 PM CT
  • August 10, 2023; 10 AM-2 PM CT
 
Tobacco Disparities Reframing Project
OPEN NOW | Virtual
The CDC Office on Smoking and Health’s (OSH) training resource to help the tobacco control community use new evidence-based framing and messaging.
 
 

Free Resources Available through the Nebraska Tobacco Quitline Order Form

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.


Monthly Health Observances and Awareness Days

August

  • Back-to-School Season
  • Pow-wow Season (generally runs June through August)
  • World Lung Cancer Day, August 1, 2023
  • National Fresh Breath Day, August 6, 2023
  • National Health Center Week, August 6-12, 2023
  • National Aviation Day, August 19, 2023
  • National Dog Day, August 26, 2023
  • National Beach Day, August 30, 2023

September

  • Cancer Awareness:
    – Blood Cancer Awareness Month
    – Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Month
    – Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
  • Healthy Aging Month
  • Infant Mortality Awareness Month
  • National Recovery Month
  • Rheumatic Disease Awareness Month
  • National Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15-October 15, 2023
  • Labor Day, September 4, 2023
  • National Day of Encouragement, September 10, 2023
  • National Women’s Health and Fitness Day, September 27, 2023
  • World Heart Day, September 29, 2023

ARTICLE: Disparities in Smokefree and Vapefree Home Rules and Smokefree Policy Attitudes Based on Housing Type and Cigarette Smoking Status, United States, 2019

The following article published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health examined variations in cigarette smoking status, home smoking and vaping rules, and attitudes toward smoking rules among U.S. adults.

Data was analyzed from the 2019 U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey Supplements (n = 40,296 adults) and calculated weighted prevalence estimates of adult cigarette smoking based on housing type.

Results
In 2019, multi-unit housing (MUH) residents who currently smoked were predominantly residents of privately rented housing (66.9%), followed by privately owned (17.6%) and public housing (15.5%). MUH residents who currently smoked had the highest proportions of allowing smoking (26.7%) or vaping (29.1%) anywhere inside their homes and were least likely to support rules allowing smoking inside all MUH apartments or living areas. In the adjusted models, MUH residents with a current smoking status were 92% less likely to have a complete smoking ban. More than one in four MUH residents with a current smoking status allowed all smoking inside the home and supported allowing smoking inside all MUH apartments or living areas, reinforcing how MUH residents may be at higher risk of experiencing secondhand smoke or aerosol exposure, or incursions within their places of residence.

Read the article


Nebraska Tobacco Quitline Offers Continuing Education Opportunity for Healthcare Providers

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 their 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.