Quit SA

The World Health Organisation has described tabacco smoking as one of the single greatest preventable cause of disease in the developed world. 

In Australia, tobacco use causes more ill health and premature death than any other drug.  Both active and passive smoking causes almost 15, 000 Australian lives to be lost each year. It has been estimated that around half of all smokers will die from smoking related diseases. 

Currently around 80% of young people in South Australia are smoke free.

Quit SA works to reduce the social and personal costs of tobacco use in South Australia by programs that

• Promote and support quitting
• Prevent the uptake of  tobacco
• Build community knowledge about the damage caused by active and passive smoking and the benefits of not smoking
• Advocate for policy and legislative changes.

MySpace and Facebook pages

At Quit SA we have a new MySpace and Facebook page that young people can use to ask us questions, chat to each other about quitting smoking, get some useful quit tips and enter some great competitions.

www.myspace.com/theeighty
www.facebook.com/pages/Quit-SA/17534941260 

National Youth Tobacco Free Day

Each year we are involved with National Youth Tobacco Free Day.  There is a new theme every year such as 'Dependance' and 'Smoking in the Movies'.  The day is always held around March. Young people can enter a competition on-line at www.OxyGen.org.au to win some great prizes.  There are always suggestions about how young people can get active around the theme.

The Oxygen Website

The OxyGen.org.au website is dedicated to young people and smoking as well as educators. There is some great information on there about smoking as well as some fun games and activities you can do.

At Quit SA we have two programs developed for young people.  These are the Smarter than Smoking SA school program and Generate 02 youth out of school program.  These programs aim to prevent young people from becoming or continuing to smoke through conducting effective programs in schools and with young people in the community.  This work contributes to the goal laid out in the South Australia Tobacco Control Strategy to reduce the precentage of young cigarette smokers 15-29 years, by 10% within 10 years with a particular focus on school age children.