"CIGARETTE SMOKING IS THE LEADING PREVENTABLE CAUSE OF DEATH IN THE UNITED STATES."
- http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/index.htm

"More deaths are caused each year by tobacco use than by all deaths from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), illegal drug use, alcohol use, motor vehicle injuries, suicides, and murders combined."
- www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/Factsheets/health_effects.htm

If you are a smoker, understand that quitting smoking is the single best action you can take to improve your own overall health.

Smoking Facts:

• Smoking cuts life expectancy approximately 13-14 years.
• Over 400,000 Americans die due to smoking every year.
• Smoking puts individuals at vastly increased risk for cancer, heart disease, stroke, respiratory disease, and osteoporosis, and magnifies the effects of all of these diseases.
• Secondhand smoke results in approximately 38,000 deaths per year.
• Smoking during pregnancy causes increased risks, including premature labor, low birth weight, sudden infant death, and stillbirth.

If you want to quit smoking, help is available. Check out some of the links below and speak with your healthcare provider.

www.cdc.gov/tobacco/quit_smoking/how_to_quit/index.htm

www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_10_13X_Guide_for_Quitting_Smoking.asp

http://www.smokefree.gov/

www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Tobacco/cessation