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American smokeout Thursday

When David Briick was young, he wanted to stand out. He wanted to look like James Dean, so he did what many Americans did and started smoking.

“He thought he looked cool in the mirror,” said Natasha Winchest, seventh grade student at Williams Elementary/Middle School. “Pretty much everybody smoked (at that time).”

Now Briick does stand out in a crowd. Not because he’s cool, but instead because he is a laryngectomy survivor — that’s a person who has who had their larynx and vocal cords removed.

“When he showed us the picture of the cancer in his throat, it made me sick,” said Arianna Tobin.

Briick spoke to students at WEMS last week as part of TNT — the towards no tobacco program. The curriculum covers consequences, self-esteem and refusal skills.

“He talked about alcohol, too and how fast he got addicted to it,” said Tobin.

As Briick spoke to students, trying to teach them the dangers of smoking cigarettes, he used a device to enhance his voice. He said he is a cancer survivor now because he decided to smoke when he was younger. His message to kids is not to start.

“It was shocking and kind of scary because it could happen to you if you started smoking,” said Winchest.

Other students agreed.

“It’s pointless and it’s wasteful,” said Cassandra Gastineau. “He spent a lot.”

There are even higher prices people can pay for smoking.

“My grandpa died because of smoking,” Gastineau said.

When approached to smoke cigarettes by peers or others, the students interviewed said they would not smoke. One student said she has already been confronted.

“I said no thanks because it’s bad for you,” said Staci Strange. “I walked away.”

To help people in their fight to stop smoking, the Great American Smokeout, sponsored by the American Cancer Society, is Thursday.

This year, smoking will account for 28 percent of all the deaths across the nation.

“Tobacco kills 450,000 Americans every year,” said Carol Ann Sullivan, health education community coordinator for the Coconino County Tobacco Prevention Program. “That includes people who die from second hand smoke.

“It kills more than alcohol, AIDS, car crashes, illegal drugs, murder and suicide combined — it’s a pretty big killer.”

This number includes 164,100 projected new cases of smoking-related illnesses doctors will see this year.

The Great American Smokeout was started in 1971 when volunteer Arthur P. Mullaney in Randolph, Mass, asked people to give up cigarettes for a day and donate the money they would have spent on smoking to a high school scholarship fund.

Since then, the Smokeout has grown in popularity. The first national Great American Smokeout was held on the third Thursday in November 1977 — a tradition that continues today.

According to the ACS’s “You Can Quit Smoking” brochure 47 million Americans smoke and 70 percent want to quit.

“You can quit cold turkey or you could start reducing,” Sullivan said. “There are certain triggers people have. If you can just wait five minutes, the urge will be gone.”

Big triggers for people are drinking alcohol and after eating or coffee. Sullivan said a big component of a successful program to quit is assistance.

“Get support,” she said. “Have somebody, either a friend, family member or co-worker, who will either quit with you or support you.”

On the day you quit:

o Get rid of all cigarettes, lighters and ash trays — anything used with tobacco.

o Carry other things to put into the mouth, such as gum, hard candy or a toothpick.

o When getting the urge to smoke, do something else.

The body will start to regenerate itself over time, if a person quits smoking. Within 48 hours after a smoker quits, nerve ending start to regrow. In one to nine months, cilia regrow in the lungs, which increase the lung’s ability to handle mucus, clean the lungs and reduce infection.

After 10 years, the lung cancer death rate become similar to non-smokers.

To help people in Williams quit smoking, the ACS offers free six-week “freshstart” classes. Currently, a class is ongoing and there is plenty of room for latecomers.

“I’ll be there to offer support,” said Mary Case, class facilitator for Williams.

The classes offer counseling and assistance to quit smoking cigarettes, cigars or using spit tobacco. The support group meets Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. at the Williams Health Care Center, 301 S. Seventh St. Anyone who needs information or is interested in registering for the class should call Case at 635-4441. Those interested in telephone counseling can call the Northern Arizona division of the ACS for help.

“I can also hook them up with the Arizona Smoker’s Helpline,” Case said. “So far, I’ve had six to seven successful classes.”

Nicotine patches, gum and Zyban (The American Cancer Society does not supply prescriptions for Zyban, nasal spray or inhaler) are items the ACS can provide through the vouchers. The Helpline number is 1-800-556-6222.


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