FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 24, 2003
CONTACT: Mary Coyne, 374-5333

Youth Tobacco Use Continues To Decline
In Second Year of Tobacco Free Amarillo

Numbers of Amarillo students who smoke cigarettes and use spit tobacco continued to decline during the second year of an anti-tobacco program funded by the Amarillo Hospital District. Tobacco Free Amarillo received $250,000 in Tobacco Settlement Funds from the Amarillo Hospital District to fund second-year activities which began Oct. 1, 2002.

Students in Grades 6, 8, 9 and 12 at the Amarillo, Bushland, Highland Park and River Road school districts were surveyed. Those who say they smoked every day declined from 7.8 percent in 2002 to 5.2 percent in 2003. Students who said they were current smokers – smoking at least one day in the last 30 – declined from 29 percent in 2002 to 17.2 percent in 2003.

At the same time, students who said they had not smoked within the past 30 days increased from 71 percent in 2002 to 82.2 percent in 2003.

“The decline in student smoking for the second year of Tobacco Free Amarillo is a success story,” said Rebecca Robinson, Ph.D., of the West Texas A&M University Center for Program Evaluation and chief evaluator for Tobacco Free Amarillo. “This shows the importance of having a comprehensive tobacco prevention and control program, like Tobacco Free Amarillo, that includes efforts in the media, schools, cessation activities, community and law enforcement working together to make a difference.”

“The Amarillo Hospital District Board is to be commended for still being the only hospital district in Texas to use Tobacco Settlement Funds for what they should be used for – a program for prevention and control of tobacco,” said James K. Luce, M.D., a volunteer with Tobacco Free Amarillo. “The public believes Tobacco Settlement Funds should be used to prevent tobacco use and the death and disease it causes. In Amarillo, we can be proud our civic leaders understand this well.”

Student use of spit tobacco also declined significantly. Those who said they had used spit tobacco at least one day in the past 30 declined from 11.4 percent in 2002 to 5.6 percent in 2003.

Several focus groups were conducted with students in the Amarillo, Bushland, Highland Park and River Road school districts. Some of the key themes from students in these focus groups included:

• Students recalled health classes, special classes and assemblies from the previous year, and they received strong anti-tobacco messages from the “Worth the Wait” program.
• Students believe that what parents and teachers say influences youth behavior.
• Students believe that the schools should talk about tobacco, even though it appears students aren’t paying attention.
• Students who say they have lost a loved one to tobacco-related illness resolve not to use tobacco.
• Students were surprised to learn about poisons other than nicotine in tobacco: “Everyone needs to know this!”

In surveys of school principals, all said they offered some form of tobacco education at their schools, and 83 percent said they used the curriculum paid for by Tobacco Free Amarillo. Of those surveyed, 88 percent said they strongly support tobacco prevention education.

A survey of pregnant women conducted recently found 19 percent smoked one or more cigarettes daily during pregnancy. Thirty-three percent said they had tried to quit smoking during pregnancy, and 68 percent said they would like to quit in the next six months. A total of 84 percent said they had seen anti-smoking television commercials sponsored by Tobacco Free Amarillo.

Evaluators also surveyed adult smokers who had completed the American Cancer Society’s Fresh Start program, which is presented by Sharri Miller who conducts cessation activities for Tobacco Free Amarillo through her work at the Harrington Cancer Center. Sixty percent of Fresh Start participants said they quit using tobacco for at least a short time during or after the program, and 23 percent had not re-started at the time they were interviewed.

Most who re-started did so in the first three months following the program. But 94 percent of those who did not quit said they would like to repeat the program. Nationwide research indicates many smokers quit up to seven times before they stay quit for good.