Ready to Quit?
Quitting tobacco is difficult—and quitting for good often requires several attempts—but the benefits of quitting are significant, and the state of Tennessee offers a range of cessation services to help employees who want to quit.
MORE THAN 23 PERCENT OF TENNESSEANS CURRENTLY SMOKE.
NATIONAL AVERAGE IS 18.4 PERCENT1
1 IN 5 DEATHS IN THE U.S. IS DUE TO SMOKING2
The state’s prescription drug coverage provides free tobacco quit aids to members of the group health insurance program. Some of the products include Chantix and over-the-counter generic gums, patches and lozenges. Members of the state’s insurance program also have access to an online tobacco tracker for setting a date to quit, measuring daily tobacco use and calculating how much money will be saved by quitting. To learn more about these programs, visit partnersforhealthtn.gov.
Because personalized support is so important for nicotine and tobacco cessation, all Tennesseans have access to the free, Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine at 1-800-QUIT-NOW for support seven days a week.
How Quitting Tobacco Benefits Your Body3
| 20 Minutes | 2 Days | 2 Weeks | 1 – 9 Months | 1 Year |
| Blood pressure and pulse are lowered | Nerve endings are restored | Circulation improves | Fatigue and shortness of breath decrease | Risk of heart attack is cut in half |
Sources
1 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2008, CdC
2 Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Years of Potential Life Lost and Productivity Losses, 2002-2004, CdC
3 Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine, health.state.tn.us/tobaccoquitline.htm
Tags: Health, Tobacco Cessation
