Kicking the Habit – NIH Offers Advice for Older Adults Trying to Stop Smoking

The National Institutes of Health has released a new web resource to help older adults stop smoking. “Quitting Smoking for Older Adults,” found at nihseniorhealth.gov/quittingsmoking/quittingwhenyoureolder/01.html, offers videos, worksheets, interactive features, strategies, quizzes, and more for older smokers who want to quit or are thinking of quitting.

Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable, premature death and illness in the U.S., responsible for almost a half-million deaths each year. In addition to lung and other cancers, smoking can cause heart disease, stroke, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, commonly known as COPD. The recent Surgeon General’s report, The Health Consequences of Smoking: 50 Years of Progress, provides new data that links smoking to bone disease, cataracts, diabetes, macular degeneration, and erectile dysfunction.

Research shows that people who quit smoking, regardless of their age, are less likely to die from smoking-related illness than those who continue to smoke. Although the rates of smoking have declined in recent years for all age groups, nearly 10{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} of adults over 65 — almost 4 million older Americans — continue to smoke.

“Most older adults know that smoking is harmful, and many have tried unsuccessfully to quit, often a number of times. But stopping smoking is a difficult goal that still eludes many older smokers,” said Erik Augustson, program director of the Tobacco Control Research Branch at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which developed the new material for nihseniorhealth.gov. “This new topic, which offers a mix of tips and tools geared to the needs and experiences of older smokers, is an important, easy-to-use resource that can benefit those trying to quit for the first time as well as those who have tried before.”

The NCI, which based the topic on its resource, Clear Horizons: A Quit Smoking Guide for People 50 and Older, has also included information about the challenges and advantages of quitting later in life, smoking’s effect on medications, and how to handle withdrawal, cravings, and more.

Quitting Smoking for Older Adults joins a roster of research-based health topics geared toward older adults, including exercise and physical activity, long-term care, safe use of medicines, and management of diseases such as stroke, diabetes, osteoporosis, and Alzheimer’s disease. A joint effort of the National Institute on Aging and the National Library of Medicine, nihseniorhealth.gov is designed to be senior-friendly and tailored to the cognitive and visual needs of older adults. The short, easy-to-read segments of information, large print, opened captioned videos, and simple navigation make the information on the site easy for older adults to find, see, and understand.

For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.