Millions of smokers go online for help to quit each year
More than 12 million U.S. adults turn to the internet for help quitting each year, according to a new Truth Initiative® study
07:31 ET
WASHINGTON, April 11, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The internet is the first place many people go to get information on how to quit smoking. In fact, more than 12 million U.S. adults — a third of all smokers — turn to the internet for help quitting each year, according to a new Truth Initiative study.
Published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research, the study examined data from the National Cancer Institute Health Information National Trends Survey to determine how many U.S. adult smokers searched online for help to quit smoking from 2005 to 2017.
Researchers found that the number of smokers who searched online for information on quitting tobacco more than doubled over the past 12 years, from 16.5 percent in 2005 to 35.9 percent in 2017. In 2017, an estimated 12,434,691 U.S. smokers searched online for quit smoking information. The findings underscore the role of internet resources in tobacco control efforts and how they can impact public health.
"Given the ability to reach roughly one-third of all smokers, and demonstrated effectiveness that is comparable to other recommended forms of cessation treatment, internet interventions have the potential for substantial impact on population quit rates," said Dr. Amanda Graham, research investigator at the Truth Initiative Schroeder Institute® and lead author of the study.
Previous Truth Initiative research has shown that internet-based programs can help smokers quit. One study found that web-based programs can be just as effective at helping smokers quit as face-to-face or telephone counseling, and are more effective than print materials. Other research shows that online quit-smoking resources may be a viable option for connecting with young adult smokers who want to quit.
BecomeAnEX®, a digital quit-smoking program developed by Truth Initiative in collaboration with Mayo Clinic, demonstrates the effectiveness of online programs. Research shows that following the EX program quadruples a smoker's chance of quitting. Additional Truth Initiative research found that smokers who became more socially connected on BecomeAnEX were significantly less likely to be smoking three months after they enrolled.
About Truth Initiative
Truth Initiative is a national public health organization that is inspiring tobacco-free lives and building a culture where all youth and young adults reject tobacco. The truth about tobacco and the tobacco industry are at the heart of our proven-effective and nationally recognized truth® public-education campaign, our rigorous and scientific research and policy studies, and our innovative community and youth engagement programs supporting populations at high risk of using tobacco. The Washington, D.C.,-based organization, formerly known as Legacy, was established and funded through the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement between attorneys general from 46 states, five U.S. territories and the tobacco industry. To learn more about how Truth Initiative speaks, seeks and spreads the truth about tobacco, visit truthinitiative.org.
About BecomeAnEX.org
BecomeAnEX® is a proven-effective tobacco cessation program, directed and funded by Truth Initiative®, a national public health organization dedicated to achieving a culture where all youth and young adults reject tobacco. The program helps smokers quit by providing free resources, including personalized quit plans and a robust virtual community where smokers can share stories and strategies about quitting. BecomeAnEX has helped more than 800,000 tobacco users over the past eight years, and research has shown that smokers who follow the EX Plan have a four times greater-than-average chance of quitting. To learn more, visit BecomeAnEX.org. To learn how the EX® Program can be used as part of an organizational health benefits program, visit theexprogram.com.
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SOURCE Truth Initiative