“Did You Know?”
The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) now makes it easier to take preventive measures though its
"Did You Know?" webpage, which is a weekly feature from the Office for State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support to inform your prevention activities. “Did You Know?” provides access to useful resources and the latest news in several health topics.
Did you know tobacco use is a major preventable cause of premature death and disease worldwide? Currently, approximately 5.4 million people around the world die each year due to tobacco-related illnesses. CDC recently launched
Tips from Former Smokers, which is a national campaign to get smokers to quit and prevent anyone else from starting. Stories and hard-hitting images about ex-smokers, who have suffered severe health consequences from tobacco use, are featured in this compelling campaign.
Winnable Battles
CDC has identified Tobacco as a
Winnable Battle, which are public health priorities with large-scale impact on health and with known, effective strategies to address them. The goal of Winnable Battles is to make significant progress in reducing health disparities and the overall health burden from several diseases and conditions, such as
tobacco use.
Public Health Foundation (PHF) has partnered with CDC to build awareness and knowledge of CDC’s Winnable Battles.
Resources,
courses, and
tools offered through PHF can be used by public health and other professionals to build the capacity to be successful. With a concentrated effort, significant progress can be made in these Winnable Battle areas in a relatively short timeframe – generally within one to four years. For example, through use of Performance Management and Quality Improvement techniques, health departments are
achieving improved health outcomes related to the Winnable Battles.