American Cancer Society's Ron Todd on how to quit smoking

(CNN) -- Quitting smoking is never easy, but the American Cancer Society tries to help millions of U.S. smokers kick the habit for at least one day. Thursday marked the organization's 24th annual Great American Smokeout. Ron Todd is director of tobacco control for the American Cancer Society, based in Atlanta, Georgia.

Ron Todd: Hello.

Chat Moderator: When did the "Great American Smokeout" start?

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Ron Todd: Well, it started 24 years ago. This is the 24th Annual Great American Smokeout. It originally started in a small town in Minnesota as a way to call attention to the importance of quitting smoking and to try to help people who were trying to quit to stop. And then it turned to a national campaign and is now in its 24th year.

Chat Moderator: What are the most common reasons people give for not being able to quit smoking?

Ron Todd: Well, I think probably the biggest one is stress, because they are exposed to other people who are smoking and I think the uncomfortable feeling of going through the withdrawal symptoms because as you quit smoking there are a number of things you experience. For example, irritability, depression, lightheadedness, disturbed sleep, and craving for nicotine; and because those things make people feel uncomfortable it makes it very difficult to quit.

Question from Kirk: How does addiction to tobacco compare to the addictions of other drugs?

Ron Todd: There were some studies that compared relapse rate for nicotine, cocaine and heroin and they found similar relapse rates for those three drugs. In other words, about 70 percent of the users relapsed and started using the drug again within a year. So you can see that nicotine is a very addictive substance.

Question from Gingo: Is the nicotine patch part of the Smokeout efforts? Would you consider me to be part of the Smokeout if I was wearing one today?

Ron Todd: I think anyone who makes a quit attempt, even if it is just for the day, is part of the Smokeout -- or even one who makes plans to quit in the future on smokeout day is considered to be someone who is participating.

Chat Moderator: What is being done to kick off the "Great American Smokeout?"

Ron Todd: Well, there are a series of things. National media ads, numerous press and TV interviews. We have sports celebrities who are appearing in local schools to talk about the importance of not smoking. And then all our division and unit offices have their own schedules of activities. So it really does reach down to the local level. And if people want information on activities for the day they can call 1 800-ACS-2345.

Question from Blukat: What really works for smokers to quit smoking?

Ron Todd: Fortunately, I think three important things are for the smoker to prepare, to have a strong commitment to quit and to have confidence and believe that they can quit. And once they have done that then there are some other things that can help smokers quit, for example, the nicotine replacement. There is Zyban, and nicotine now comes in several options so you have the patch, the gum, the inhaler or the nasal spray. There are also other things that can help smokers such as social support and encouragement from friends, behavioral change programs, and many states are now offering cessation counseling over the phone. You can also get help from your healthcare provider and you are welcome to call the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345.

Question from Nirvanafan: Does Zyban really help out? How effective is it?

Ron Todd: It was evaluated on the new guidelines for cessation from the federal government as being effective. Now, it is impossible to say which smokers may find it more helpful than others, but it is something they should talk with their physician about since it is necessary to have a prescription.

Question from Readytoquit: Are there any Web sites where smokers help each other?

Ron Todd: There is a QuitNet Web site that provides online support. There are actually several Web sites -- if you start with QuitNet it can lead you to some of the other ones. We have a pamphlet that lists Web sites for cessation -- the pamphlet is called Set Yourself Free and it is available by calling the 1-800-ACS-2345.

Question from KALMdown: Which is more effective: quitting cold turkey or gradually?

Ron Todd: Well it is impossible to predict which method may work best for a particular smoker. However, it seems that most smokers do quit cold turkey. The one danger about gradual quitting is that the smoker does it over such a long period of time they end up not quitting rather than setting an immediate quit date and allowing themselves a short time frame to taper down.

Question from Striker: Mr. Todd, I am not a smoker but I noticed that these nicotine replacements seem to be more expensive than cigarettes. What are your thoughts? Part of the campaign against cigarettes is the cost associated with them.

Ron Todd: Actually the nicotine patch and gum are about the same cost or relatively close. I think one of the difficult things about purchasing nicotine replacement is you have to purchase a large amount at one time which makes it appear more expensive. But if you actually cost it out by cost-per-day, it is very close to the cost of cigarettes.

Chat Moderator: What is being done to educate youth about the dangers of tobacco products?

Ron Todd: From the ACS prospective we advocate comprehensive school education programs that include education about smoking as well as other substances. Additionally, we recommend that states allocate funds for media campaigns for youth advocacy and campaigns to change the social environment so that young people will realize that smoking is not desirable and it is not what most adults do. Actually 3/4 of the adults in the country don't smoke - - only 1 in 4 do.

Question from Allsuefla: Is it a fact that one month of not smoking can add 5 years on to the end of your life or is that figure inflated?

Ron Todd: Well depending on how much someone smokes and how long they have been smoking it is difficult to say absolutely how much time they gain by quitting. But we do know that quitting smoking can provide reductions in a number of diseases such as lung cancer, heart disease, cancer of the throat and mouth and emphysema -- and a host of other diseases associated with smoking cigarettes and using tobacco. It is important to quit and stay quit to reap those benefits. But the benefits your body starts to repair itself very quickly after stopping. For example, 20 minutes after quitting your blood pressure lowers to a normal rate; 8 hours after quitting your carbon monoxide level in the blood stream drops to normal and in just 24 hours after quitting chance of a heart attack decreases. But is very important to maintain abstinence from cigarettes permanently to reap the greatest reward.

Question from Fouryrssmokefree: Approximately how much time does it take for the lungs to return to normal once you quit smoking...do the lungs ever completely return to normal?

Ron Todd: If a smoker stays abstinent for 15 years a great deal of the damage to the lungs can be repaired. And in just a couple of weeks to 3 months after quitting the lung function is improved and through coughing and other means they began to clear out a lot of the contaminant that was produced by cigarettes.

Question from Homeslice: Honestly, how many people actually go through with this smokeout and quit smoking?

Ron Todd: Well, last year we estimated that 21 percent of smokers participated in the smokeout. And there are an estimated 47 million smokers. I guess you can do the math and come up with the number. At least 21 percent participated in the 1999 smokeout.

Chat Moderator: Do you have any final thoughts to share with us?

Ron Todd: I think one important message is that if you have tried to quit and were not successful it does not mean that you failed. You only fail when you stop trying to quit. And so, I would encourage all smokers to use a relapse as a learning experience and take that wisdom into their next attempt (to quit) and if they are consistent and committed they will succeed.

Chat Moderator: Thank you for joining us today.

Ron Todd: Well, I'd like to thank you for listening and being interested in this subject and I wish you all the best of the luck if you are trying to quit today or any other day you choose to quit.

Ron Todd joined the chat via telephone from Atlanta, Georgia. CNN.com provided a typist for him. The above is an edited transcript of the chat, which took place on Thursday, November 16, 2000.