PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Smartphone apps lack proven strategies to help smokers quit

2013-11-19
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Kathy Fackelmann
kfackelmann@gwu.edu
202-994-8354
George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services
Smartphone apps lack proven strategies to help smokers quit

WASHINGTON, DC (November 19, 2013)—An estimated 11 million smokers in the United States own a smartphone and increasingly they're turning to apps in an attempt to quit. But many of the most popular anti-smoking apps for iPhones or Androids lack some basic strategies that are known to help smokers quit, according to a new study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

"Quit-smoking apps are an increasingly available tool for smokers," says lead author Lorien Abroms, ScD, an associate professor of Prevention and Community Health at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services (SPHHS). "Yet our study suggests these apps have a long way to go to comply with practices that we know can help people stub out that last cigarette."

Abroms, J. Lee Westmaas, PhD at the American Cancer Society, and others on the team collected data on quit-smoking apps for the iPhone and Android, the two leading smartphone operating systems.

They found apps for smartphones were in high demand around the world, with more than 700,000 such apps downloaded every month for Android phones alone. The popularity of such apps may speak to the high level of desire smokers have to quit. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than half of all smokers tried to quit in 2010, the most recent year that statistics were available.

The researchers identified 414 quit-smoking apps for iPhones and Androids and then zeroed in on 50 of the most popular ones from each operating system. The team analyzed each app's approach to smoking cessation, including their adherence to guidelines established by the U.S. Public Health Service on treating tobacco use. The guidelines review decades of scientific studies and offer recommendations on the most effective ways to beat a tobacco habit.

Overall, the study found that the most popular apps were not giving smokers the best treatment options—at least from a clinical practice standpoint. For example, none of the apps in this study recommend that smokers call a quit-line, usually a toll free number that has trained public health counselors on hand that provide advice on quitting smoking. According to the U.S. Public Health Service such counseling can more than double a smoker's chance of successfully ending their habit.

And less than one in 20 apps recommended that smokers try medication to help them resist the cravings for a smoke. Researchers know that nicotine replacement therapy can be a highly effective tool, especially when used in conjunction with a quit-line. In fact, the use of such counseling along with medication can more than triple a smoker's chances of joining the ranks of former smokers. Most apps also lacked basic advice on how to quit smoking and did not provide assistance in setting up a quit plan, the authors said.

This study had some limitations, including the fact that it does not offer any insight on how the apps are being used once downloaded and whether people are using them in combination with other effective methods. The research suggests that people should use popular apps with some level of caution and probably not as a stand-alone method for quitting.

In fact, Abroms suggests smokers might want to consider taking the new technology a step back by using their phone not just to download an app but to make a call. "They should simply pick up their smartphone and call a quit-line now to get proven help on how to beat a tobacco addiction."



INFORMATION:



The study, "A Content Analysis of Popular Smartphone Apps for Smoking Cessation," is available online now and will be in the December print edition of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

(Smokers can access a toll-free help line run by the state they live in by calling: 1-800-Quit-Now. Or they can access a phone-based coaching program to help them quit run by the American Cancer Society by calling: 1-800-227-2345.)

About the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services:

Established in July 1997, the School of Public Health and Health Services brought together three longstanding university programs in the schools of medicine, business, and education and is now the only school of public health in the nation's capital. Today, more than 1,100 students from nearly every U.S. state and more than 40 nations pursue undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral-level degrees in public health. The school now offers an online Master of Public Health, MPH@GW, which allows students to pursue their degree from anywhere in the world. http://sphhs.gwu.edu/



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Origin of species: Protein imbalances doom hybrids

2013-11-19
Origin of species: Protein imbalances doom hybrids Why do crosses between closely related species fail to produce fertile hybrids? A new study led by Professor Axel Imhof of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich shows that differences ...

Scientists nearing forecasts of long-lived wildfires' paths

2013-11-19
Scientists nearing forecasts of long-lived wildfires' paths New computer modeling technique offers promise of continually updated predictions Scientists have developed a new computer modeling technique that for the first time offers the promise of continually-updated ...

UT Dallas computer scientists create 3-D technique

2013-11-19
UT Dallas computer scientists create 3-D technique 3-D imaging technique utilizes famous mathematician's theory UT Dallas computer scientists have developed a technique to create 3-D images that finds practical applications of a theory created by ...

New study determines more accurate method to date tropical glacier moraines

2013-11-19
New study determines more accurate method to date tropical glacier moraines Dartmouth-led research may alter previous interpretations of climate's impact on equatorial glaciers A Dartmouth-led team has found a more accurate method to determine the ages of boulders ...

Study finds youth prefer and benefit more from rapid point-of-care HIV testing

2013-11-19
Study finds youth prefer and benefit more from rapid point-of-care HIV testing TORONTO, Nov. 19, 2013 – Youth prefer, accept and receive HIV results more often when offered rapid finger prick or saliva swab tests rather than traditional blood tests according ...

Study: Ureteral injury during robot-assisted prostate surgery

2013-11-19
Study: Ureteral injury during robot-assisted prostate surgery DETROIT – There may be warning signs to help surgeons avoid damaging part of the urinary system during robot-assisted surgical removal of prostate cancer, ultimately preventing the expense of additional ...

Tropical Cyclone 04B forms in northern Indian Ocean

2013-11-19
Tropical Cyclone 04B forms in northern Indian Ocean The fourth tropical cyclone of the Northern Indian Ocean season formed and is headed for landfall in a couple of days in southeastern India. NASA's TRMM satellite saw broken bands of thunderstorms with moderate ...

NASA sees late season subtropical storm Melissa form in Atlantic

2013-11-19
NASA sees late season subtropical storm Melissa form in Atlantic Hurricane Season ends on November 30, and subtropical storm Melissa formed with less than two weeks to go. Melissa formed on Monday, November 18 about 695 miles/1,120 km east-southeast of Bermuda, near ...

HZDR researchers simulate electrons in astrophysical plasma jets

2013-11-19
HZDR researchers simulate electrons in astrophysical plasma jets "When the wind blows over the ocean, waves form," Michael Bussmann, head of a HZDR junior research group, starts to explain. "At high wind speeds, water and wind swirl about one ...

Social values vary across Canada

2013-11-19
Social values vary across Canada New survey led by Concordia University sheds light on responsible citizenship This news release is available in French. Montreal, November 19, 2013 — Canada: true north, strong and free. But how strong are our beliefs? ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

Antibiotic resistance among key bacterial species plateaus over time

‘Some insects are declining but what’s happening to the other 99%?’

Powerful new software platform could reshape biomedical research by making data analysis more accessible

Revealing capillaries and cells in living organs with ultrasound

American College of Physicians awards $260,000 in grants to address equity challenges in obesity care

Researchers from MARE ULisboa discover that the European catfish, an invasive species in Portugal, has a prolonged breeding season, enhancing its invasive potential

Rakesh K. Jain, PhD, FAACR, honored with the 2025 AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research

Solar cells made of moon dust could power future space exploration

Deporting immigrants may further shrink the health care workforce

Border region emergency medical services in migrant emergency care

Resident physician intentions regarding unionization

Healthy nutrition and physical lifestyle choices lower cancer mortality risk for survivors, new ACS study finds

[Press-News.org] Smartphone apps lack proven strategies to help smokers quit