Falls Church, Va.— Myth: Smokeless tobacco products are a safe alternative to tobacco smoking. Fact: Mouth cancer, cancer of the pancreas, and tooth loss are only a few of the serious conditions connected to the use of smokeless tobacco.
The Department of Defense (DoD) and TRICARE are deploying on-line weapons in their arsenals to promote the “Great American Spit Out” (GASpO) on Feb 19, and “Through With Chew Week,” Feb. 15-21. Military installations are also invited to participate in the attack on smokeless, but far from harmless, spit or chewing tobacco, often simply referred to as “dip.”
Campaign headquarters is located at DoD’s tobacco cessation Web site, http://www.ucanquit2.org, online headquarters of the multi-year campaign, “Quit Tobacco – Make Everyone Proud.” Military installations can now register their GASpO event at http://www.ucanquit2.org/facts/gaspo to promote it to the military community and those in the local area of their participation in the Great American Spit Out.
The award-winning Ucanquit2.org Web site provides high-tech and interactive tools to help service members follow through with their plans to quit. In the new My QuitSpace area of the site registered users can create a blog, either public or private, to document their journey or share their experiences. They may also download a customizable quit plan and quit calendar, adding personalized information, goals, tips and dates.
Many service members trying to quit tobacco have questions. In response to this need, the Web site introduced an Ask the Expert feature for GASpO. Captain Larry N. Williams, U.S. Navy Tobacco Clinical Cessation Champion, will be the guest expert throughout the month of February.
Williams will answer questions from smokeless (or smoked) tobacco users and those who support their intention to quit, including health promotion and health care professionals on military installations.
Service members and others are encouraged to visit the Web site and submit questions about smokeless tobacco usage, health risks, quit strategies and more. Williams’ responses will be posted on a daily basis.
Visitors at http:///www.ucanquite.org can also take part in the discussion boards, read a new online article debunking the myths surrounding smokeless tobacco, and play games, such as Texas Hold ’em, which deals out informative and motivational messages along with the cards.
Ucanquit2.org arms service members with the tools they need to win the battle against tobacco. It also enables them to get “quit” support from family and friends, no matter where they live, as well as professional counseling. Through Live Chat, a unique online service, users get immediate real-time help from trained tobacco cessation coaches from 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. EST.
TRICARE also has a special Web page geared to quit tobacco efforts at http://www.tricare.mil/tobaccofree.
About TRICARE Management Activity and the Military Health System
TRICARE Management Activity, the Defense Department activity that administers the health care plan for the uniformed services, retirees and their families, serves more than 9.2 million eligible beneficiaries worldwide in the Military Health System (MHS). The mission of the MHS is to enhance Department of Defense and national security by providing health support for the full range of military operations. The MHS provides quality medical care through a network of providers, military treatment facilities, medical clinics and dental clinics worldwide. For more about the MHS go to www.health.mil.
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