eKick Butt to help smokers quit
The Cancer Association of South Africa (Cansa) says smokers can quit with the help of its new free eKick Butt online smoking cessation programme.
World No Tobacco Day was held on May 31, and Cansa says the youth continue to be the most vulnerable in starting the use of tobacco products.
Manny de Freitas, who is a member of the Cansa board of governors, says clever marketing deployed by tobacco companies can be countered.
“It has become a norm for tobacco companies to advertise some of their products as light, filtered, low tar, menthol and even fruit flavoured, thus, implying that these products aren’t as dangerous as they would ordinarily be.
“This is simply not the case. The scary fact is that according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), most smokers start smoking before the age of 18, and almost a quarter start using tobacco before the age of 10,” says de Freitas.
He adds that the WHO says harsh anti-tobacco graphic warnings on packaging reduce the number of children who begin smoking and increase the number of smokers who quit.
“Today tobacco comes disguised in different ways, such as in the form of water pipes, hubbly bubblies or hookah-smoking. This is prevalent particularly among young people,” he adds.
De Freitas says Cansa can help people addicted to tobacco to kick this habit.
“’With our free eKick Butt online smoking cessation programme, the smoker is guided and mentored as they quit smoking and non-smoking becomes a lifelong habit,” explains de Freitas.
The programme can be found on www.ekickbutt.org.za or you can call Cansa toll-free on 0800 22 66 22, or e-mail them at info@cansa.org.za. – @TumeloBoksburg
