You’ve heard the reasons that smoking is bad for you: increased risk of heart disease and certain cancers, potential lung disease, loss of smell and taste, to name a few. You also know that as a first responder it is especially important for you to be at your best so that you are ready for the next call. But maybe you’ve found it difficult to set your quit date and take the steps to become smoke-free. The American Cancer Society’s (ACS) Great American Smokeout is today, November 18, and is the perfect opportunity to start or plan your quit. Take advantage of the resources and support available and make today your first day as a non-smoker.
One of the first steps to becoming smoke-free is to make a quit plan and set a quit date. The Great American Smokeout provides an ideal time to take this step. The ACS provides many resources to help you set your quit date, develop your quit plan, deal with withdraw, and stay quit. Find these resources and much more at http://www.cancer.org/Healthy/StayAwayfromTobacco/GreatAmericanSmokeout/index.
The National Volunteer Fire Council’s (NVFC) Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program provides resources and information to help firefighters stay healthy, including quitting smoking. The NVFC has partnered with Pfizer Inc. to develop Put It Out, an in-depth smoking cessation campaign. The Put It Out web site provides tools and resources for firefighters and emergency personnel who are ready to take the steps to stop smoking and lead a healthier, smoke-free lifestyle.
The Put It Out site contains sections to assist individuals in quitting smoking, family members in supporting first responders who are quitting, departments in establishing a no-smoking policy and smoking cessation program, and state associations in encouraging their members to adopt a smoke-free lifestyle. Tools and resources include a ‘quit calendar,’ steps for how to quit, statistics and facts about smoking, sample documents such as press releases and no-smoking policies, outreach letters, motivational tools, and more.
Learn more about how you can quit smoking and adopt and maintain an all-around heart-healthy lifestyle. For additional resources and information, visit smokefree.gov, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Cancer Institute, My Time to Quit, American Lung Association, American Heart Association, and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
