Seven Tips Mental Health Care Providers Can Use to Address Patient Tobacco Use

Abstract

Approximately fifty million people living in the United States (U.S.) use tobacco. Tobacco use is the single largest preventable cause of disease and/or death in the U.S. People living with mental illness account for a disproportionate amount of tobacco use. Individuals living with mental health or substance use conditions consume almost half of all cigarettes sold in the U.S. People with schizophrenia are three to four times as likely to smoke as the general population. People living with mental illness also die prematurely compared to the general population and they and have a disproportionate number of tobacco-attributable deaths. Less than two-thirds of psychiatrists ask about tobacco use and screening for tobacco use is not standard practice in many community-based services for mental health. Despite this, approximately 70% of people living with mental illness who smoke say they would like to quit smoking. This tip sheet offers 7 tips to help your clients quit using tobacco.