Smokers urged to quit, at least for today

Anderson, who tends bar at the Winner's Circle in Hanover, said Wednesday she was aware of the American Cancer Society's 33rd annual "Great American Smokeout Challenge," which is today and urges America's smokers to quit the habit for one day, in lieu of a longer commitment.

But she's never decided to participate.

Anderson turned 60 years old on Tuesday, putting her in the middle of what, according to a recent U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study, is one age group with smoking rates on the rise.

The study, which surveyed the change in rates of Americans from 2007 to 2008 who report themselves as smokers, indicates that while the overall rate of smoking is up only slightly from 19.8 percent to just under 21 percent, the rate of those between 45- and 64-years-old who now smoke jumped from 21 percent to 22.6 percent.

Experts disagree on the cause of the sudden rise in the 45- to 64-year-old age group, but are mostly united in their concern that the bump could be indicative that a previously successful anti-smoking campaign may have finally hit a wall.

Adult smoking hovered around 21 percent from 2004 to 2006, before dropping a full percentage point in 2007, according to Matthew McKenna, director of the CDC's Office on Smoking and Health.

The drop gave officials hope the smoking rate was dropping again, but officials now worry it was only a statistical aberration.

The rise in overall rates, though small, still represents the first increase since 1994 in the total percentage of adults who smoke.

Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, and has been linked to multiple types of cancer and heart disease.

For Anderson, smoking is not about facts and figures. It's about principle.

She said it's unfair the government keeps raising the price of cigarettes when there are plenty of other dangerous vices they don't explicitly enforce.

"It's not like they keep raising the price of fast food because of obesity," she said with a laugh. "Well, not yet, anyway."

But officials say those increases in cigarette taxes are part of the reason smoking rates have dropped in recent years, and they're upset cigarette manufacturers have in turn slowed their own price increases. Slower rises in cigarette prices over the last four years have led to much smaller corresponding drops in smoking rates, anti-smoking advocates say.

Still, flanked by two smokers on either side of her at the bar, Anderson -- who said she's smoked "for a while" -- explained events like the Smokeout Challenge, while well-intentioned, have always missed the mark with her.

And often, it's a slippery slope from good intentions to interfering with people's lives and freedom, she said. In the end, it shouldn't really be anyone's business.

"I do think about (the smokeout) sometimes and I saw it this year, but I never do it," she said with a wry smile and a shrug. "Maybe next year."

Getting Involved

More than 46 million Americans have quit smoking for good. Many organizations offer information and counseling on how to quit, as well as information on where to go for help. Once you've decided to quit, experts recommend picking a quit date. Quitting smoking is a lot like losing weight in that it takes a strong commitment over a long time. There is no magic bullet for quitting smoking, health officials say. The most important step is making a commitment to the process, and utilizing available resources. Many can be found at the American Cancer Society's Web site, at www.cancer.org.

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