Since the health hazards of cigarette smoking became widely publicized in a series of reports by the Surgeon General in 1964, public attitudes toward smoking have grown more negative and the majority of smokers have tried to stop smoking. As the prevalence of smoking in the United States has gone from 40% in 1965 to recent estimates of about 25% of the adult population, those smokers who continue to smoke tend to be the "hard core". These are smokers who have made numerous attempts to stop smoking but have failed. This book constitutes a resource for professionals working with hard-core smokers and their families. It is designed as a practical, and clinically useful guide for all those in a position to intervene, including mental health professionals, physicians, dentists, nurses, pharmacists and other health care professionals, clergy, human resource and employee assistance programme corporate staff, and teachers and guidance counsellors. Despite massive public health education about the dangers of cigarette smoking, rates of smoking among the young population are no longer declining in the United States and the success rates of clinical programmes for smokers remain low.
"Helping the Hard-Core Smoker" seeks to explain why current approaches are often inadequate and how best to help today's highly nicotine-dependent smokers who are struggling with their addiction.