National Tobacco Education Campaign Seeks Storytellers

About 480,000 people die from tobacco-related diseases annually in the United States, yet many Americans do not understand the full extent of the health damage that smoking can cause. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC's) groundbreaking national tobacco education campaign, Tips From Former Smokers (Tips), aims to tell real stories about tobacco by featuring Americans who have undergone devastating life changes caused by years of smoking. Since the launch in 2012, the campaign has motivated 1.6 million smokers to make a quit attempt. Moreover, more than 100,000 U.S. smokers will remain quit as a result of the 2012 campaign. Call volume to the 1-800-QUIT-NOW quitline increases dramatically during each campaign. In 2013, the average weekly number of calls increased by 75%.

Evidence-based research strongly supports how hard-hitting ads can reduce smoking and save lives. The Tips campaign uses this technique to reach as many smokers as possible with a profound impact. For the 2016Tips campaign,CDC is looking for stories from former smokers who:

• Have or have had anxiety OR depression (not both) and a serious health condition due to smoking (ages 30–60)
• Have been diagnosed with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) due to smoking (ages 40–55)
• Currently serve or have served in the military and have been diagnosed with a serious health condition due to smoking (i.e.,coronary artery disease/heart attack, COPD, peripheral artery disease, cancer, or stroke) (ages 30–60)
• Have been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis while smoking (ages 25–60)
• Have used electronic cigarettes along with tobacco cigarettes instead of quitting because they thought it was better for their health than smoking cigarettes alone and yet they experienced a severe health problem (ages 20–60)
• Have been diagnosed with a serious health condition caused by smoking and now have a compelling positive story about the benefits experienced since quitting (ages 18–54)

For more information or to participate, visit www.joinCDCtips.com or contact Mimi Webb Miller Castingby e-mail(contact@joinCDCtips.com) or by phone (toll free) (844) 274-9816. Travel expenses and a stipend will be provided.