Tuesday, January 10, 2012
National Non-Smoking Week acknowledges breaking up is hard to do
Health Unit sweetens the deal for local quitters
January 15 marks the start of National Non-Smoking Week in Canada and the 2012 theme is “Breaking up is hard to do.” While kicking a tobacco addiction is not easy, Leeds, Grenville
and Lanark residents can gain some extra motivation with the seventh annual Driven to Quit Challenge, which is open until February 29.
Tobacco addiction resembles a dependent relationship according to the Canadian Council for
Tobacco Control, which has been hosting National Non-Smoking Week for more than three
decades. They are encouraging Canadians to kiss tobacco goodbye this week.
As a reward for breaking free from tobacco, the Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health
Unit is reminding those who quit that they can win their choice of a 2012 Ford Fusion or Ford Edge in the Canadian Cancer Society Driven to Quit Challenge. There are also two $5,000 CAA travel vouchers and seven $2,000 cash prizes to be won. One cash prize is reserved for a
resident in the Eastern Ontario region. The Driven to Quit Challenge is presented in
collaboration with local public health departments across the province.
Ontarians aged 19 and older, who had smoked for at least 10 months in the year 2011, can
enter. Each entrant must sign up with a support buddy, who stands to win $200 cash. To be
eligible for the prize draw, participants must stay smoke-free for all of March 2012.
2011 Driven to Quit Challenge grand prize winner, Brian Perkins, traded his thirty year
relationship with cigarettes for some new connections. “The biggest help was being online on
Facebook, reading comments, getting feedback from other people quitting,” said Perkins, who
is still smoke-free. “Being able to form relationships with other people who understand what
you are going though is a big help.” The Driven to Quit Challenge community can be found
online at facebook.com/smokershelpline and twitter.com/smokershelpline.
To register and for details about The Driven to Quit Challenge, Ontarians can go to
www.DrivenToQuit.ca or call the Canadian Cancer Society Smokers’ Helpline at 1-877-513-
5333. You can also get more information at www.healthunit.org or by calling the Health
ACTION Line at 1-800-660-5853.
Contact: Yves Decoste, Tobacco Co-ordinator, 613-345-5685
or Susan Healey, Communications Co-ordinator, 613-802-0550
|