Tobacco Facts.

Cigarette smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable illness and death in the United States, contributing to the death of more than 435,000 people each year. Smoking is a known cause of numerous cancers, heart disease, stroke, pregnancy complications, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and many other diseases. Approximately 70 percent of all smokers report that they would like to quit and simple advice to quit from a physician can increase the likelihood that a smoker will quit. Moreover, there are a number of evidence-based pharmacological and behavioral interventions that have proven to be effective in smoking cessation. However, smoking or tobacco dependence is a chronic relapsing condition that often requires repeated interventions and multiple attempts to quit.

Nicotine-replacement therapies (NRT) such as the nicotine patch and nicotine gum, and other Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved medications such as bupropion and varenicline, have been found to increase the rates of successful smoking cessation by a ratio of 1.5 to 3.1 in comparison to a placebo. There are few if any interventions that would have a bigger effect on the health of the veteran population than improving care for smoking cessation. Finally, research has demonstrated that smoking cessation counseling and treatment is highly cost-effective relative to many other routine preventive health practices, such as annual mammography and screening for hypertension.

Prevalence and Trends Data