Txtn2quit

A New Zealand study has shown providing motivational support through daily text messages may help young cigarette smokers kick the habit. It is estimated that only about 5 per cent of smokers are able to kick the habit without any help, but after 22 weeks, 16 per cent had stopped using a service that sends texts to smokers trying to quit. Kicking the smoking habit is notoriously difficult, and text messaging is no magic bullet. Most of the roughly 2,600 smokers across the studies did not succeed in quitting, regardless of whether they had text-message help. But text messages could serve as one more tool in the smoking-cessation arsenal, according to University of Auckland lead researcher Dr Robyn Whittaker. “We know that stopping smoking can be really difficult and most people take several attempts to quit successfully,” Whittaker told Canada’s National Post. “And so I think it is important to be able to offer lots of different options for extra support.” One of the programs in the study, called Txt2Quit, is already up and running in New Zealand, with government funding. Smokers seeking to quit can sign up for the free 26-week program, which automatically sends users two to three text messages per day shortly before their designated “quit date,” and for one month afterward. After that, they receive three text messages a week.