As many of you may know by now, the Winnebago County Health Department received word that we've been awarded a new grant to form a Drug Free Communities Coalition. We won't receive our "official letter" probably until the end of September but the website below lists us as a new grantee for 2008. This is a wonderful opportunity for our county and will be a great addition to our Tobacco Free Coalitions work. I will hopefully post some of the details of the grant before our meeting on September 16.
Check it out!
http://www.ondcp.gov/dfc/
the Lakeshore Tobacco Prevention Network
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Just wanted to share this article from about a month ago originally from the Boston Globe. Hope it re-ignites the passion you all have for reducing the prevalance of tobacco in Winnebago County. Our efforts DO make a difference!
And don't forget our next meeting is at Buffalo Wild Wings in Oshkosh at 4:30 on Tuesday September 16. See you there!
Massachusetts Tobacco Prevention Program Drove Dramatic Reduction in Smoking Rates, Officials Say
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health on Thursday announced that the state's smoking rate declined by 8 percent in 2007, attributing the reduction to the reinvigoration of Massachusetts' tobacco control program, the Boston Globe reports. The report, which is based on survey data, indicates that the proportion of Massachusetts adults who smoke decreased from 27.8 percent in 1986 to just 16.4 percent in 2007, marking an 8 percent reduction over 2006 figures and a historic low for the state. Previous research also indicates that the reduction in tobacco use was especially pronounced among adolescents, as the percentage of teenage smokers who reported smoking regularly decreased from 20.5 percent in 2006 to 17.7 percent in 2007.
Massachusetts health authorities credit the improvements in large part to the recent renewal of a statewide anti-tobacco campaign. The two-month, $500,000 initiative included an "aggressive anti-smoking television ad campaign" depicting former smokers whose health was affected by tobacco use, as well as a Web site where state residents can access information on smoking cessation. The health department expects the smoking rate to further decline during 2008, citing evidence that, since the state increased the tobacco tax by $1 in early July, residents made 7,000 calls to the state's tobacco quit line, up from a monthly average of between 400 and 500 calls.
Reflecting on the report's findings, tobacco control specialists warn that it is difficult to predict future smoking rates based on just one year of data. The former director of the state's tobacco control program, meanwhile, says the drop in smoking rates over the last three decades suggests that the state's commitment to tobacco prevention has "fundamentally changed the social norms around smoking in Massachusetts." (Smith, Boston Globe, 7/31/08)
And don't forget our next meeting is at Buffalo Wild Wings in Oshkosh at 4:30 on Tuesday September 16. See you there!
Massachusetts Tobacco Prevention Program Drove Dramatic Reduction in Smoking Rates, Officials Say
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health on Thursday announced that the state's smoking rate declined by 8 percent in 2007, attributing the reduction to the reinvigoration of Massachusetts' tobacco control program, the Boston Globe reports. The report, which is based on survey data, indicates that the proportion of Massachusetts adults who smoke decreased from 27.8 percent in 1986 to just 16.4 percent in 2007, marking an 8 percent reduction over 2006 figures and a historic low for the state. Previous research also indicates that the reduction in tobacco use was especially pronounced among adolescents, as the percentage of teenage smokers who reported smoking regularly decreased from 20.5 percent in 2006 to 17.7 percent in 2007.
Massachusetts health authorities credit the improvements in large part to the recent renewal of a statewide anti-tobacco campaign. The two-month, $500,000 initiative included an "aggressive anti-smoking television ad campaign" depicting former smokers whose health was affected by tobacco use, as well as a Web site where state residents can access information on smoking cessation. The health department expects the smoking rate to further decline during 2008, citing evidence that, since the state increased the tobacco tax by $1 in early July, residents made 7,000 calls to the state's tobacco quit line, up from a monthly average of between 400 and 500 calls.
Reflecting on the report's findings, tobacco control specialists warn that it is difficult to predict future smoking rates based on just one year of data. The former director of the state's tobacco control program, meanwhile, says the drop in smoking rates over the last three decades suggests that the state's commitment to tobacco prevention has "fundamentally changed the social norms around smoking in Massachusetts." (Smith, Boston Globe, 7/31/08)
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