19-882 Get Ready for the Great American Smokeout on November 21, 2019
Date: 11/12/19
Get Ready for the Great American Smokeout on November 21, 2019
Help members quit with these resources
The Great American Smokeout is coming up!
Most smokers make multiple quit attempts before succeeding – as many as 30 on average.1 Therefore, smokers should be encouraged to keep trying to quit until they succeed. Each time an individual makes a quit attempt, they have an opportunity to learn something that may assist them in their next quit attempt. The more often an individual tries to quit, the more the chances for success.
Let members know about these programs
California Smokers’ Helpline
The Helpline offers free telephone counseling and materials to quit smoking, as well as free nicotine patches to eligible callers.
· 1-800-NO-BUTTS
· Learn more at www.nobutts.org.
myStrength
myStrength recently launched their Nicotine Recovery program. The program is designed to help individuals determine their readiness for quitting and tailors recommended myStrength activities to an individual’s stage of change. The Nicotine Recovery program includes expert videos, interactive activities and stories of hope from recovered nicotine users to help individuals reach their nicotine recovery goals.
Members can access myStrength online at bh.mystrength.com/cahealthwellness.
After setting up an online account, they can also download the myStrength app for iOS and Android devices and register using the same email and password.
What is vaping?
Vaping is the act of breathing in a vapor through the mouth from a battery-powered device. The device (e.g., e-cigarette, e-cigar, pipe) has a metal coil that heats up and converts a liquid into vapor. The term vaping is used because e-cigarettes do not produce smoke, but they make an aerosol that is often confused for water vapor. The vapor contains various toxins that have been linked to cancer, lung disease and heart disease.2
Is vaping safer than smoking cigarettes?
Electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, are often used in place of cigarettes. An e-cigarette usually has three parts:
· a base with a battery
· a liquid cartridge or tank
· a heating unit inside the cartridge or tank
E-cigarettes are often marketed as the “safe” choice to cigarettes. However, most e-cigarettes contain nicotine like habit-forming cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products.
Is vaping an option to quit smoking?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not found any e-cigarette to be a safe choice in helping smokers quit. E-cigarettes are not approved by the FDA as a quit smoking aid. In addition, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force deduced that there was not enough evidence to advise e-cigarettes for smoking cessation.3
What are the risks?
The main component of e-cigarettes is its e-liquid or “vape juice.” To create vape juice, nicotine is taken from tobacco and mixed with a base (mostly propylene glycol). To increase consumer appeal, flavors and colors are added. But these elements have chemicals, such as formaldehyde and acrolein, which can cause long-lasting lung damage.4
In 2016, the Surgeon General found that secondhand e-cigarette vapor contains:
· Nicotine.
· Very fine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs.
· Diacetyl, a chemical linked to severe lung disease.
· Volatile compounds, which are found in car exhaust.
· Heavy metals, such as nickel, tin and lead.5
Danger for all ages
E-cigarettes are the most commonly used tobacco products among kids. It’s become an epidemic. Though studies about the long-term effect of e-cigarettes continue, there is growing information about the health risks of e-cigarettes on the lungs. This includes severe lung damage and lung disease.6
Bystanders can also inhale the vapor when a nearby user exhales it. There have also been cases where faulty e-cigarette batteries have caught fire or exploded, causing severe injuries.7 In some cases, children and adults have been poisoned. They have either swallowed, inhaled or absorbed e-cigarette liquid through their skin or eyes.8
Additional information
Providers are encouraged to access California Health & Wellness Plan’s (CHWP’s) provider portal online at www.CAHealthWellness.com for real-time information, including eligibility verification, claims status, prior authorization status, plan summaries, and more.
If you have questions regarding the information contained in this update, contact CHWP at 1-877-658-0305.
References
1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2019. State-Specific Prevalence of Quit Attempts Among Adult Cigarette Smokers — United States, 2011–2017. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/68/wr/mm6828a1.htm?s_cid=mm6828a1_w.
2 Center on Addiction. (2019). What is vaping? Retrieved from https://www.centeronaddiction.org/e-cigarettes/recreational-vaping/what-vaping.
3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018). About electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/about-e-cigarettes.html.
4 American Lung Association. (2019). E-cigarettes. Retrieved from https://www.lung.org/stop-smoking/smoking-facts/ e-cigarettes-and-lung-health.html.
5 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018). Quick facts on the risks of e-cigarettes for kids, teens, and young adults. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/stuff/Quick-Facts-on-the-Risks-of-E-cigarettes-for-Kids-Teens-and-Young-Adults.html.
6 American Lung Association. (2019). E-cigarettes. Retrieved from https://www.lung.org/stop-smoking/smoking-facts/e-cigarettes-and-lung-health.html.
7 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018). Quick facts on the risks of stuff for kids, teens, and young adults. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/stuff/Quick-Facts-on-the-Risks-of-E-cigarettes-for-Kids-Teens-and-Young-Adults.html.
8 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018). Quick facts on the risks of e-cigarettes for kids, teens, and young adults. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/Quick-Facts-on-the-Risks-of-E-cigarettes-for-Kids-Teens-and-Young-Adults.html.