CMH offers free smoking cessation classes in Bolivar starting Sept. 17

If you’ve tried to quit smoking on your own, you know how hard it can be because nicotine is extremely addictive. Tobacco use remains the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, yet an estimated 40 million Americans still smoke cigarettes.

Citizens Memorial Hospital (CMH) will offer free Smoking Cessation Classes starting at 5 p.m. g Monday, Sept. 17,in the Community Rooms at CMH, 1500 N. Oakland, Bolivar. The classes will be led by Anne Bristow, RRT. Bristow has a master’s degree in counseling and education, more than 40 years of experience as a respiratory therapist, 20 years of experience as a smoking cessation counselor at CMH, and is a certified American Lung Association smoking cessation counselor.

The classes are a series of seven sessions over a six-week period until the program graduation date.  Smoking cessation binders and quit kits are provided.

“Tobacco smoke contains a deadly mix of more than 7,000 chemicals,” says Bristow. “Seventy of those chemicals in tobacco cause cancer. The average smoking history of our graduates is 37 years, so you are never too old to stop smoking or change your habits!”

The class is free and limited to 10 participants. Advance registration is requested. To register for the class, contact CMH Cardiopulmonary Rehab, at 417-328-6574.