Thank you to all of those who showed support of the Alliance this past Memorial Day Weekend by visiting us at the ACME in the Pine Grove Shopping Center on May 26, 2002. We appreciate your time and contributions. Members of the Alliance also participated in the Annual Memorial Day Parade sponsored by the VFW on Junction Road. The next Alliance meeting is scheduled for June 11, 2002 at 7:00 pm in the Municipal Building. Come join us as we “work hand in hand for a drug free community”!
Recently the Department of Health and Senior Services announced that cigarette smoking dropped by 42 percent in middle schools and dropped by 11 percent in high schools in New Jersey from 1999 to 2001. “The survey results provide evidence that we are making strides toward protecting New Jersey’s future by deterring young people from smoking and helping smokers to quit,” said Governor James E. McGreevey. “We must build on our successes to help even more young people avoid using tobacco and preserve their health”.
Overall, the survey findings showed that younger age groups are showing the biggest decline in tobacco use. New Jersey’s rate of decline in current cigarette use among middle school students (42 percent) exceeded national numbers. Additionally, current cigarette use among New Jersey high schoolers declined 11 percent. While these double-digit declines are less dramatic than those among younger survey respondents are, they are a strong indication of the difficulties associated with breaking an established habit.
Tobacco use behavior of New Jersey youths is changing for the better. We know that tobacco use starts early – with fewer middle school students lighting up, there is increased likelihood that they will avoid pressures to use tobacco in high school, or ever. In fact, the 2001 survey reveals evidence that New Jersey youth want to quit. Among current high school smokers, 55 percent said they wanted to quit, and the same percent reported a serious attempt to quit in the previous 12 months.
Evidence shows that programs supporting restrictive smoking policies have the potential to not only reduce exposure from environmental tobacco smoke, but also to reduce smoking prevalence among all age groups. The Department of Health plans to put a strong emphasis on environmental tobacco smoke in the upcoming year, through support of initiatives developed by REBEL (Reaching Everyone By Exposing Lies), New Jersey’s youth anti-tobacco movement, and through Communities Against Tobacco (CAT) coalitions throughout the state.
New Jersey also offers three customized cessation services: New Jersey Quitnet (a free online resource), New Jersey Quitline (a no-cost toll-free hotline) and New Jersey Quitservices (a clinic-based cessation program available at a sliding scale fee). The State’s Comprehensive Tobacco Control Program is designed to reduce the sickness, disability, and death among New Jerseyans associated with the use of tobacco and exposure to environmental tobacco smoke. To obtain a complete copy of the 2001 youth tobacco survey, log onto www.state.nj.us/health.
