anti-smoking – AZ Dept. of Health Services Director's Blog

The benefits of quitting smoking begin almost immediately

By Sheila Sjolander|2021-11-17T12:11:47-07:00November 17th, 2021|Prevention|

In the 15 years since voters approved the Smoke Free AZ Act, Arizona has made significant progress in the battle to reduce smoking and improve public health in our state. When the measure passed in 2006, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 18.6 percent of Arizonans smoked. Today, that number is [...]

Encouraging Trends in New Bi-annual Tobacco Prevention Report

By azdhs-admin|2017-02-10T09:51:42-07:00July 12th, 2011|Prevention|

Part of the authorizing statute for our tobacco prevention programs includes a requirement that we develop a bi-annual report of our progress and activities. Just two years ago, we reported that we were shifting to an “evidence-based” approach to our prevention activities. In other words, we shifted our intervention strategies to focus on approaches that have [...]