Texting might just help smokers kick the habit for good

Texting Helps Smokers Quit

Texting is dangerous for drivers but they may be beneficial to smokers who want to quit, a new study published June 30 in The Lancet showed.

Researchers said that smokers are twice more likely to quit smoking permanently if they receive text messages that motivate them to kick the habit compared to another set of smokers who received generic text messages.

For the first five weeks of texting, the participants received five messages per day for the initial five weeks and three per week for the succeeding 26 weeks.

They were also allowed texting to seek some help during cravings or when about to go into a relapse.

A follow-up was made after six months of quitting and those who got the motivational texts did not relapse and remained smoke-free.

Interestingly, a small percentage of the smokers found the motivational texts to be unhelpful after some time. "There's no one form of support that will work for everyone," said lead researcher Caroline Free.

Just 10.7 percent of smokers who engaged in texting were still smoke-free after six months but that figure is still twice the amount of those who did not receive the texts.

Health experts and agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that within just three weeks of quitting, a smoker's risk of having a heart attack drops significantly and normal lung function is almost regained.

Texting to quit smoking may be more helpful and effective in poor countries where smoking rates are high but mobile phone use is widespread according to a commentary attached to the study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Posted by George Daniels on Friday July 01 2011, 11:12 AM EST. Ref: USA Today. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Health. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0