TriCounty Health Department is doing their part to improve community health in the Uintah Basin and among their efforts lately is to spread the truth about Big Tobacco, calling it the biggest scam of the last 100 years. “The best thing to do with tobacco is never use it,” shares TriCounty Health. “If you do use it, the best thing you can do for you and your family’s health is to quit.” The tobacco industry has been on the decline the last 10 years but statistics in the Uintah Basin remain relatively high. About 15 percent of adults in the TriCounty Health District smoke and roughly 12 percent chews tobacco. About 5 percent of the TriCounty youth population smoke, which is around 1,500 youth. To put that in perspective, that is about the same number of youth that attend Uintah High School. TriCounty Health also emphasizes the financial cost of tobacco, sharing that the average smokers spend about $2,500 dollars a year on tobacco. There are many resources available to those wanting to quit. Contact TriCounty Health Department for more information.
WayToQuit.org
is also a great resource.
