DoD asks troops to kiss the spit goodbye
Source: www.tradingmarkets.com Author: staff When the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) weighs in on kissing and spitting, it's with good reason--two good reasons, in fact: love and health. Using smokeless tobacco--spit, dip, chew, snus, etc.--can pose a stinky, unsavory obstacle to sharing a kiss with a loved one, parent, child or sweetheart. It also may cause a slew of serious health problems. That's why DoD/TRICARE(R) wants military personnel to participate in the Great American Spit Out (GASpO) on February 24, 2011, and kiss the spit goodbye for a day. Some 19 percent of 18- to 24-year-old men in the armed forces use smokeless tobacco, more than double the national rate. To help cut that number down, the DoD Quit Tobacco--Make Everyone Proud campaign at http://www.ucanquit2.org is focusing this month on helping those who spit and chew tobacco to develop a personalized quit plan and to take action that may get them more kisses and help them gain more years of a healthy life. "Many of our servicemen started using smokeless tobacco at a young age due to peer pressure and became addicted before realizing the negative effects it could have on their personal relationships and health," said Cmdr. Aileen Buckler, M.D., M.P.H., U.S. Public Health Service officer and chairman of the DoD Alcohol and Tobacco Advisory Committee. Throughout the month, the DoD website will host a special GASpO page, http://www.ucanquit2.org/facts/gaspo/, where service members can publicly post their pledge to quit. Capt. Larry N. Williams, U.S. Navy tobacco clinical cessation champion, [...]