Consumer Health - August 2013 Archives

Mayo Clinic’s Nicotine Dependence Center (NDC) is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. As one of the first centers in the country to focus exclusively on treatments for tobacco dependence when it opened in 1988, the NDC has been at the forefront of the battle of nicotine addiction nationally as well as globally, offering the latest education and training programs, advancing research aimed at tobacco dependence interventions, and offering treatment approaches to tobacco users. The founder and director of the NDC, Richard Hurt, M.D., says, “As I reflect on the past 25 years, the key to our success has been the dedicated and innovative staff. The patients we see are in need of hope and help, and our team delivers care in a compassionate and motivating way.” Dr Hurt says, while it's encouraging that the number of Americans who smoke has dropped to 18 percent that still means 45 million adults are lighting up. He says a recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that 6 out of 10 current smokers, if they don't quit, will die of a tobacco-caused disease. Journalists: Sound bites and smoking b-roll are available in the downloads.   Read the entire news release: NDC 25 Anniv http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Kmb5W5YD6k