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Smokefree Through Generations

Collage of many generations of family members from diverse ethnic backgrounds

The men and women who are part of CDC’s Tips From Former Smokers® (Tips) campaign often say they wish they had never started smoking. One of the ads features a woman named Terrie, who tells viewers how much she regrets picking up that first cigarette.

The ad was filmed only three days before Terrie died in 2013. At that time, her daughter Dana was still struggling to quit smoking for good.

“Mom always told me: ‘never stop trying to quit,’” Dana said. She took that advice to heart. After her mother’s death, Dana finally quit for good, using medicines shown to help people quit smoking.

No matter your age, quitting smoking benefits your health. Nearly 7 out of 10 American adults who smoke want to quit, and so many Americans have quit over the years that there are now more people who used to smoke than people who still smoke.1

Even so, about 34 million adults in the US smoke cigarettes.1 For 40 years, on the third Thursday in November, the American Cancer Society has urged people who smoke to commit to quit, whether it’s their first try or the latest of many.