Tribal Council Hoping To Cut Smoking Rates

Tribal Council Hoping To Cut Smoking Rates

Thursday, June 03, 2010 at 12:58

 

 

BTC Indian Health is conducting a two-year program to cut tobacco use on First Nations in the Battlefords area.

 

Executive director Janice Kennedy says the project is one of two or three in the province funded by Health Canada.

 

The Battlefords Tribal Council project involves training people to conduct stop-smoking classes on reserves, as well as encouraging people not to smoke in homes.

 

Reserve residents who don’t smoke in the home are given a special blue light bulb to put outside their homes.

 

The idea is to let others know their home is a non-smoking home.

 

Kennedy says number of smokers in Battlefords-area reserves is high.

 

In 1998, 56 per cent were smokers. In 2009, the figure was 66 per cent.

 

Kennedy says the increase is probably due to the fact there’s a large population of young people on reserves.

 

She says some people are smoking two packs a day.