In recognition of National Women’s Health Week (Week of May 12), the Tobacco Free Columbia Dane County Coalition (TFCDC) is encouraging women who smoke to quit and reminding them that free help is available.
 
According to the 2012 Wisconsin Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, a fifth of women in Wisconsin currently smoke. Further, 9.7% of women in Dane County and 15% of women in Columbia County smoke during pregnancy according to the 2010 Burden of Tobacco in Wisconsin report. The national average is 10.4%. In addition, over 15% of all deaths in Wisconsin are deaths directly due to smoking, as stated by The Burden of Tobacco.
 
Another startling statistic from the new Surgeon General’s Report is that women who smoke are up to 40 times more likely to develop chronic obstructive pulmonary disease --- which includes diseases like bronchitis and emphysema --- than women who don’t smoke.
 
The benefits of quitting are immediate and lasting. Just twelve hours after quitting, carbon monoxide levels in your body start to drop to normal levels. After 24 hours, your risk for heart attack decreases. A year after quitting, excess risk of coronary heart disease falls to half that of a tobacco user; after 15 years coronary heart disease risk falls to the same as a non-smoker.
 
Reducing health concerns, along with the stigma and expenses of smoking can be very beneficial.  Women who quit also say they feel like they have more control in their lives, have healthier skin, smell better and worry less.
 
Officials from Tobacco Free Columbia & Dane County encourage women who smoke to talk to their doctor or take advantage of free assistance provided in Wisconsin. “TFCDC urges women who smoke to call the Wisconsin Tobacco Quit Line for free assistance at 1-800-QUIT-NOW” said Ryan Sheahan, Coalition Coordinator.  “Quitting smoking is difficult, but it’s worth the hard work, and you don’t have to do it alone.”

For additional information consult the following links:
General Information about smoking and women
What happens after you quit smoking

This release is distributed by Public Health -Madison and Dane County on behalf of the Tobacco Free Columbia-Dane County Coalition.