All forms of tobacco are harmful. Tobacco of any kind such as cigarettes, snus and snuff can lead to tobacco/nicotine dependence and a variety of health issues.

Research suggests that nicotine may be as addictive as heroin, cocaine, or alcohol. Quitting tobacco use can be a challenging process and can take several attempts.

Cigarette smoke is not only harmful to the person using the cigarette, secondhand smoke is also very dangerous. The smoke from other people’s smoke can cause cancer and heart disease in nonsmoking adults. Secondhand smoke is very much harmful to children and can cause ear infections and respiratory issues that can cause lifetime health problems.

There is help for people that want to stop using tobacco products. “Freedom From Smoking” is an eight to 12-week session that assists individuals in quitting smoking and stop using other tobacco products. Each class lasts one and a half to two hours.

Freedom From Smoking is administered through the American Lung Association and is used by agencies across the United States. The Clark County Health Department offers the Freedom From Smoking course every quarter.

Two sessions will be offered in July. One session will begin at 3 p.m. July 10 at the Winchester Housing Authority main office, 200 Canewood Drive, Winchester, exclusively for Winchester Housing Authority residents.

A session will begin at noon July 11 at Clark County Pharmacy, 716 Boone Ave., Winchester, for all community members.

The fee for an entire class is $5. NicoDerm CQ patches are offered to participants that are enrolled in Freedom From Smoking. The patches are of no cost to the FFS participants.

The Clark County ASAP board provides funding to the Health Department in order to purchase the NicoDerm CQ patches.

Registration is required in order to attend the Freedom From Smoking sessions. Individuals must attend all classes. To enroll, call me at the Clark County Health Department at 859-744-4482, Ext. 1037.

Clark County Health Department provides programs for the entire family, including WIC, HANDS, family planning, well child care/immunizations and home health care. For more information, call 744-4482 or visit our website at www.clarkhealthdept.org.

Information obtained through www.cdc.gov and www.lung.org