At this time of the year, when many TV ads incite smokers to quit, let us recall that TV antismoking ads helped more people quit than any other intervention, including nicotine-replacement therapy and telephone help lines, according to a study published in the March 2006 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
TV Ads Help Many Smokers Quit
February 24, 2006
TV antismoking ads helped more people quit than any
other intervention, including nicotine-replacement therapy and
telephone help lines, according to a new study.
Researchers looked at the effect of televised ad campaigns, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), prescribed medications, professional help, self-help materials, cessation programs, telephone quit lines, and web-based cessation sites. Conclusions were reached by multiplying efficacy rates by participation rates or penetration into the population.
Among the group of former smokers studied, 30.5 percent credited TV ads with helping them quit, compared to 20.8 percent who credited NRT, 11.1 percent who gave credit to professional counseling, and less than one percent who said telephone quit lines helped them stop smoking.
Ironically, the only part of the National Action Plan for Tobacco Cessation that has been implemented to date is a telephone help line.
"These findings suggest that the resources being devoted to the quit line would be better spent if used for a national anti-tobacco media campaign," said lead researcher Lois Beiner, Ph.D., of the University of Massachusetts' Center for Survey Research. "Antismoking ads on television are likely to be the sole source of support for quitting smoking among young adults, who make less use of traditional forms of quitting assistance."
"It is noteworthy that the illness ads, body bags, and inspirational quit tips were the types of ads deemed helpful by most quitters," she added. "What these ads appear to have in common is that all tend to arouse high levels of emotion. The fact that such ads are spontaneously recalled by successful quitters as the ones instrumental in their success provides confirmation for previous studies that noted the superior effectiveness of emotionally arousing ads."
The research was published in the March 2006 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
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