Tips Campaign Matte Article for People With Mental Health Conditions

This matte article about the Tips From Former Smokers^® campaign is ready for use. It is available for journalists, bloggers, other members of the media, and organizations’ newsletters.

CDC’s Tips From Former Smokers Campaign Airing a New Round of Hard-Hitting Commercials

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Tips From Former Smokers^® (Tips^®) campaign returns with new hard-hitting ads. The campaign features real people impacted by the serious long-term health effects of smoking and secondhand smoke exposure. The Tips campaign also tells the stories of family members who take care of a loved one living with a smoking-related disease.

Many of this year’s new ads include messaging about the harms of menthol cigarettes. Tobacco companies add menthol to commercial tobacco products to make them seem less harsh and more appealing to people who have never used cigarettes. People who smoke menthol cigarettes can be less likely to successfully quit than people who smoke non-menthol cigarettes.

Tobacco companies aggressively market menthol-flavored tobacco products to different groups of people. This marketing contributes to certain groups being more likely to smoke menthol cigarettes than other groups. Young people, racial and ethnic minority groups, LGBTQ+ people, women, people with a low income, and people with mental health conditions are more likely to smoke menthol cigarettes than other population groups.

Smoking is more common among adults with mental health conditions, such as depression or anxiety, than the general population. In 2020, 23.1% of U.S. adults with any mental illness reported smoking cigarettes during the past month compared to 14.5% of adults with no mental illness. It is not fully understood why persons with mental health conditions are more likely to smoke. More research is needed to determine this.

Getting help for depression and anxiety and quitting smoking are the best ways to feel better. Research shows that, just like others who smoke, adults with mental health conditions who smoke want to quit and can quit. They can benefit from proven quit-smoking treatments.

Rebecca M., age 54, is one of the people featured in CDC’s Tips campaign. She started smoking cigarettes at age 16. All her family members smoked, and once she started, she was addicted. As an adult, she tried to stop, but like many people who smoke, she soon discovered she had trouble quitting.

Rebecca was diagnosed with depression at age 33. She smoked when she felt depressed because she thought it might help her cope. When she tried to quit and couldn’t, she felt even more depressed. “That was just a vicious, vicious cycle,” she said. Rebecca knew her health was in danger when she developed severe gum disease. All people who smoke are at risk for gum disease. To break this cycle, Rebecca knew she had to get care for her depression and quit smoking for good.

Rebecca was finally able to stop smoking and make a fresh, tobacco-free start. She wanted to be a good role model for her grandson, so she dedicated herself to a healthier lifestyle. Rebecca started exercising and went to therapy to get help for her depression.

As Rebecca started enjoying life as a nonsmoker, she felt encouraged by the positive changes and progress she had made. “I learned that I have the power to change. It is all within me,” said Rebecca.

The new campaign ads air beginning February 5, 2024, and run through September 22, 2024.

“The Tips ads show the challenges real people face every day as a result of smoking in a way that statistics cannot,” said Deirdre Lawrence Kittner, PhD, MPH, Director of CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health. “We are grateful to all of the people featured in the Tips campaign for sharing their personal stories about how smoking has negatively impacted their lives. By providing information, resources, and motivation, the Tips campaign has helped save lives.”

CDC launched the first federally funded national tobacco education campaign, Tips, in March 2012. From 2012–2018, CDC estimates that approximately one million people successfully quit smoking and millions more tried to quit because of the Tips campaign.

For more information about the Tips campaign and resources for quitting smoking, visit CDC.gov/tips. For help quitting, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669).

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