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Resolve to Quit Smoking for Better Health

Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine Offers FREE Support to Residents Who Want to Quit

Tennessee Department of HealthNashville, TN – Start the new year by making healthy lifestyle changes such as eating better, getting more physical activity and quitting smoking. While quitting can be difficult, it can be done, especially with the help of professional support. Tennesseans have a greater chance of quitting for good and keeping their New Year’s resolution with help from the Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine, a free coaching service available to all adult Tennesseans who wish to stop using tobacco.

“Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do to improve your health and the health of your family, and we’re eager to support any Tennessean who wants to take up this challenge,” Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH, said. “Research shows smokers who use counseling as part of their quit program have a better chance of quitting. We encourage all Tennesseans ready to start a tobacco-free life to take full advantage of the free resources the QuitLine provides.”

The Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine, available at 1.800.QUIT.NOW and online at www.tnquitline.com, offers personalized support for Tennessee residents who want to quit smoking by connecting them with trained quit coaches to guide them through the quitting process. Callers will receive ongoing professional coaching via individually scheduled calls with a quit coach personally assigned to them. This convenient and confidential service is free and available in both English and Spanish. The service is also available for the deaf and hard-of-hearing at TTY: 1.877.559.3816.

QuitLine callers have complimentary access to relapse prevention techniques, printed resource materials, information on nicotine replacement therapies and other services to aid in the quitting process.

Give yourself a raise: Besides being a killer, tobacco use is expensive! Most smokers directly spend more than $1,000 each year just on cigarettes and not counting the added costs of transportation, higher life and health insurance premiums and other indirect costs.

Give your body a break:  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, quitting smoking has the following health benefits:

  • Lowers risk of lung and other types of cancer
  • Reduces risk for heart disease and stroke
  • Improves respiratory symptoms such as coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath
  • Reduces risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, a leading cause of death in the United States
  • Reduces risk for infertility among women
  • Reduces risk of low birth-weight babies for women who stop smoking while pregnant

The Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine (1.800.QUIT.NOW or 1.800.784.8669) is a statewide toll-free telephone tobacco cessation treatment program made possible through the Tennessee Department of Health. Call or visit www.tnquitline.com today. There is no charge for services and clients have unlimited access to a quit coach through the QuitLine. Hours are Monday through Friday, 7:00am to 10:00pm; Saturday 9:00am to 6:00pm and Sunday 10:00am to 4:00pm Central Time.

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