See THROUGH the Smoke!

Foothill College's Health Services has a tobacco education and smoking cessation program called
See Through the Smoke.

The mission of the program is to expose the lies of the big tobacco companies and the myth that cigarettes are fashionable, to raise awareness to tobacco-related issues and to offer help to those interested in quitting tobacco.

The program raises awareness to tobacco-related issues through creative projects, especially projects using new media and design. Students of design, illustration, web publishing and new media are encouraged to do research on the topic of tobacco in order to come up with the content of their projects. We hope that during their research the facts of tobacco and the tobacco industry will speak for themselves and inspire strong design from the creators.

With the help of our tobacco-education program and outreach we hope to initiate a dialogue on campus about this topic. If an individual feels they made an informed decision when they started smoking they probably will not learn anything new about the effects of tobacco and the practices of the tobacco industry. But if they feel they would like to make a change in their life and stop smoking we can help them quit.

Students, faculty and staff interested in quitting smoking can call and make an appointment with a smoking cessation counselor at 650.949.7243.
One-to-one counseling, Nicorette gum, Nicoderm patches and Zyban prescriptions are all offered on campus at the Health Office.
There is no charge for any of these medications and services!

Health Services is located in the New Campus Center, Room 2126.
It is open from Monday – Friday: 8:30 a.m.–1 p.m. and 2–4 p.m and closes the fourth Tuesday of each month at 14:30 p.m.

Some tobacco-related facts follow:

1. Tobacco use kills almost a half million Americans annually, including 50,000 people who die each year from secondhand smoke.
   • Among women, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths, and has been for the past 12 years killing 70,000 women each year.
   • The smoke of a cigarette contains more than 4000 chemicals, forty-three of which are known carcinogens.
2. Cigarettes are the most heavily marketed consumer product in America and the only product that kills when used as intended.
   • Each day the tobacco industry needs to replace almost 5,000 customers who either quit or die.
   • To replace these smokers, the industry looks to sections of society that it sees as likely consumers: children, ethnic minorities, low-income populations and women.
3. Each day, more than 3,000 kids become regular smokers.That is more than one million kids a year.
   • Roughly one-third of them will eventually die from a tobacco-related disease.
   • Eighty-five percent of kids who smoke prefer Marlboro, Camel and Newport, the three most heavily advertised brands.
4. In 1997, the five largest tobacco companies earned an estimated $480 million in profit from cigarettes smoked by people under the age of 18.

                                See    THROUGH!

The Facts

3,000 teens start smoking each day

90% of today's smokers started smoking before the were 18 years old.

Over half of teen smokers buy their own cigarettes.

Cigarettes kill more people than homicide, suicide, car crashes, fires, heroin, cocaine, and AIDS combined.

Nicotine, a component of tobacco smoke, is an addictive drug.

Of every 100 people who attempt to quit smoking, only 25 are still non-smokers after 1 year.

There are more than 4,000 chemicals in cigarette smoke, such as·

Acetone ‡ Nail Polish Remover ‡ Cadmium ‡ Rechargeable Batteries ‡ Butane ‡ Ligher Fluid ‡ Nicotine ‡ Insecticide ‡ Acetic Acid

Smokeless Tobacco

About one-third of high school seniors (and more than half of male high school seniors) have tried smokeless tobacco.

Smokeless tobacco use can cause gum disease and cancer of the mouth, throat and pancreas.

60% of high school users do not believe that smokeless tobacco is harmful to their health.

The Truth About Advertising

The tobacco industry spends $8 billion on cigarette advertising each year.

Much of its advertising target youth.

There are statistically more tobacco advertisements in stores within 1,000 feet of schools.

86%, of all teen smokers smoke one of the three most heavily advertised brands (Camel, Marlboro, and Newport).

• 30% of 3 year-olds can identify Joe Camel.
• 91% of 6 year-olds can identify Joe Camel.
• Philip Morris paid $350,000 for James Bond to smoke Marlboro brand cigarettes in the last movie.
• Phillip Morris lets candy companies use its trademark on candy cigarettes.

                                See    THROUGH!