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DOH-Miami-Dade and Tobacco Free Florida Raise Awareness During “Through with Chew Week”

By DOH Miami-Dade

February 16, 2016


February 16, 2016
                                                                       
DOH-Miami-Dade and Tobacco Free Florida Raise Awareness During “Through with Chew Week”   
Contact:
Communications Office
786-336-1276
Miami, Fla. –TheFlorida Department of Health in Miami-Dade County and the FloridaDepartment of Health’s Bureau of Tobacco Free Florida are raising awareness about the dangers of smokeless tobacco, like chew and dip, duringThrough With Chew Week.” This public awareness campaign was created to reduce the use of smokeless tobacco among young people and help combat this deadly addiction. “Through With Chew Week” takes place February 14-20, 2016.
 
To raise awareness about the dangers of smokeless tobacco use, the local health department and partners from the Miami-Dade Tobacco-Free Workgroup will educate the community and young adults at local colleges and universities.
 
Although youth and young adult cigarette smoking rates in Florida reached an all-time low in 2015, smokeless tobacco use has fluctuated but has not decreased compared to a decade ago. In 2015, 4.9 percent of Florida high school students reported current smokeless tobacco use, the same rate it was in 2005.1
 
Using smokeless tobacco can lead to nicotine addiction and dependence.2 In addition, compared to cigarettes, smokeless tobacco products like chew and dip can contain more nicotine.3 Since 1988, nicotinehas been established to be as addictiveas heroinand cocaine, which coupled with adolescents’ bodies being more sensitive to nicotine, makes them more easily addicted than older adults.4,5 Studies have shown that adolescent boys who use smokeless tobacco have a higher risk of becoming cigarette smokers.6,7,8,9
 
At least 28 cancer-causing chemicals have been identified in smokeless tobacco.10 Smokeless tobacco users have an 80 percent higher risk of oral cancer and a 60 percent higher risk of esophageal cancer and pancreatic cancer compared to non-users.11 These harmful health effects can be avoided by young adults through education and awareness about the dangers of smokeless tobacco use.
 
Currently, there is no scientific or medical evidence that proves smokeless tobacco use is an effective method to help people quit smoking. Floridians who want to quit any form of tobacco have access to free and proven-effective resources.
 
  • CALL: Call Tobacco Free Florida at 1-877-U-CAN-NOW to speak with a Quit Coach® who will help you assess your addiction and help you create a personalized quit plan.
  • CLICK: Tobacco Free Florida’s online cessation tool can be accessed at tobaccofreeflorida.com/webcoach.
  • COME IN: In person help is available with the help of Area Health Education Centers by calling 305-243-2847.
 
For more information, please visit www.tobaccofreeflorida.com.
 
About Tobacco Free Florida
 
The department’s Tobacco Free Florida campaign is a statewide cessation and prevention campaign funded by Florida’s tobacco settlement fund. Tobacco users interested in quitting are encouraged to use one of the state’s three ways to quit. Since 2007, more than 126,140 Floridians have successfully quit, using one of these free services. To learn more about Tobacco Free Florida and the state’s free quit resources, visit www.tobaccofreeflorida.com or follow the campaign on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TobaccoFreeFlorida or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/tobaccofreefla.
 
About the Florida Department of Health
The department works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts.
Follow us on Twitter at @HealthyFla and on Facebook. For more information about the Florida Department of Health please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov
 
 
 
[1] Florida Youth Tobacco Survey (FYTS), Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Epidemiology, 2015
2 Cancer Prevention & Early Detection Facts and Figures 2010.
3 U.S. National Library of Medicine. Smokeless Tobacco. n.d. Web . 19 August 2011.
4 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking: Nicotine Addiction: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 1988
5 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Coordinating Center for Health Promotion, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2006.
6 Lund I, Scheffels J. Smoking and Snus Use Onset: Exploring the Influence of Snus Debut Age on the Risk for Smoking Uptake With Cross-Sectional Survey Data. Nicotine and Tobacco Research 2014;16(6):815–9 [accessed 2014 Oct 31].
7 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2014 [accessed 2014 Oct 31].
8 World Health Organization. IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. Volume 89: Smokeless Tobacco and Some Tobacco-Specific N-Nitrosamines.[PDF–3.18 MB] Lyon (France): World Health Organization, International Agency for Research on Cancer, 2007 [accessed 2014 Oct 31].
9 Tomar, SL. "Is Use of Smokeless Tobacco a Risk Factor for Cigarette Smoking? The U.S. Experience." US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 5 Aug. 2003. Web. 19 Jan. 2016.
10 World Health Organization. Smokeless Tobacco and Some Tobacco-Specific N-Nitrosamines International Agency for Research on Cancer Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans Vol. 89. Lyon, (France): World Health Organization, International Agency for Research on Cancer, 2007 [accessed 2015 Feb 10].
11 Boffetta, P, et al., “Smokeless tobacco and cancer,” The Lancet 9:667-675, 2008.
 
 
 
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