Computer program helps evenhard smokers quit

  Article date: 2002/01/16,Same Approach Available Free on the Internet

A personalized stop-smoking program can increase smokers’ chances of quitting, even among those least likely to quit, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine (Vol. 161, No. 21: 2596-2601).

Researchers in Switzerland studied a computer program which used computer-generated counseling letters and brochures to help smokers quit.

In the study, daily smokers who received written materials geared toward their level of motivation to quit were more than twice as likely to quit, compared to smokers who did not receive the materials (5.8% vs. 2.2%).

Although the percentage of quitters may seem small, experts say it still means thousands of lives could be saved.
"If one percent of current smokers quit this year, that would equal 480,000 people, versus the 400,000 who will die from tobacco-related causes this year," says Angela Geiger, director of strategic initiatives at the American Cancer Society (ACS).

Smokers Targeted by Readiness to Quit

Jean-Francois Etter, PhD, MPH, from the University of Geneva, and his colleagues studied 2,934 daily smokers at various stages of preparing to quit.

The researchers gave 1,467 smokers a questionnaire that assessed whether they had no intention of quitting, were considering quitting in the next six months, or were preparing to quit in the next 30 days.

The smokers were then sent computer-tailored counseling letters and stage-matched booklets over the next six months. An equal number of people received no treatment (the control group).

The outcome was measured seven months after the program began. Those who were considered successful said they had not taken even a puff of tobacco in the past four weeks.

The program was effective for about 6% of the smokers. It was even effective in groups that typically have a hard time quitting — heavy smokers, teenagers, and those with a low motivation to give up their cigarettes.

One smoking expert says this kind of program is needed.

"Current approaches focus mainly on helping people who already want to quit," said Alfred McAlister, PhD, an ACS consultant and professor of behavioral sciences at the University of Texas school of public health in Houston. "More attention is needed for the people who are not quite ready, especially to increase their self-confidence for quitting."
Stop-smoking Programs on the Web

Although the program tested in the study was done through the mail, the same brochures are available on the Internet — at no charge — at www.stop-tabac.ch. The study authors wrote that, "... given its massive recruitment capacity, either by mail or on the Internet, this program has the potential to have a large effect on public health."

Another web-based program called Committed Quitters, at commitedquitters.com, is very similar to the Swiss approach, according to McAlister. The sponsors, Schiffman and Nicorette, "have published data suggesting that it ’works,’" he said.

The ACS plans to conduct its own web-based clinical trial this year, Geiger said.

"If scientific evidence continues to show that these kinds of interventions work, it could be a very cost-effective way to support a large number of smokers in their quit attempt," said Geiger.

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