Smokers can quit with the right help

(CNW) - Smokers may have up to four times the typical quit rates if they have effective access to counselling and nicotine replacement therapies (NRT), a new interim report indicates.

The STOP (Smoking Treatment for Ontario Patients) Study through the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is designed to find out the most effective methods of supporting Ontario smokers who want to quit.

In its first two years, the study reached more than 38,000 smokers, more than 20 percent of the 175,000 Ontario smokers eligible to participate. The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is conducting the study with funding from the Ontario government.

Minister of Health Promotion Margarett Best announced Wednesday that Ontario will provide an additional $2 million to add 15,000 more smokers to the study.

"The STOP Study's early results show that people can break the habit when they have the proper support," said Best. "We are determined to help smokers quit and the STOP Study is just one of the many initiatives we have supported to help Ontarians quit smoking - and live healthier, longer and better lives."

For information on how to participate in the STOP Study, visit www.ontario.ca/smokefree or call 1-800-350-5305.
"This is the first time such a study has been implemented in Canada on such a large scale," said Dr. Peter Selby, CAMH's Clinical Director of Addiction Programs and Principal Investigator of the STOP Study.

Almost 1.7 million Ontarians 18 years and older currently smoke.