Partners

For an fourteenth consecutive year, the Ministry of Health and Social Services is pleased to be associated with the Quit to Win! Challenge and offer smokers positive and dynamic support to help them break their tobacco habit. The Ministry recognizes the essential role of this mobilizing intervention in smoking cessation and in promoting the goals of the Plan québécois de lutte contre le tabagisme.

The Ministry of Health and Social Services invites smokers wishing to end their dependence on tobacco products to register in large numbers for the Quit to Win! Challenge and take advantage of an exceptional mutual-assistance experience that will enable them to enjoy the beneficial effects of a smoke-free life.

Congratulations to all participants who will take up this healthy approach!

Thanks to all the sponsors who offer participants their help and friendship.

Best of luck with the 2013 Quit to Win! Challenge!

For an a fourteenth consecutive year, the Agences de la santé et des services sociaux of the Public Health Departments are joining forces with the Quit to Win! Challenge in order to offer smokers an effective approach to quitting – positive and dynamic support that will allow them to free themselves from tobacco use.

The Public Health Departments recognize the essential role of this campaign directed at the Québec population and take advantage of the initiative to mobilize its partners from different networks in promoting the Challenge among various smoker bases. We are proud to be an associate of the Challenge, which year after year has been a great success!

The Canadian Cancer Society fights cancer by promoting a healthy lifestyle

We now know that cancer rates could be reduced by at least 50% through the adoption of a healthy lifestyle and the enactment of policies aimed at protecting the health of Canadians. As such, smoking, a diet deficient in fruits and vegetables, prolonged sun exposure, and a lack of physical activity are major issues for the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS).

A leader in the fight against tobacco, the CCS considers smoking its top national priority. The CCS works daily to fight cancer by lobbying for legislative amendments pertaining to tobacco control. It also lobbies all governments to pass laws aimed at banning the advertising of tobacco products to Canadian youth and protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke. In addition to endorsing certain anti-smoking campaigns, the CCS offers smoking cessation programs such as the Ligne j’Arrête smokers’ helpline and SMAT (Short Messages Against Tobacco), a support service through text messaging and mobile applications. Moreover, in October 2012, the CCS started publishing the Info-tabac magazine five times a year and over 7,000 free copies were distributed to Quebec MNAs and more than 500 journalists as well as doctors, pharmacists, nurses, teachers, and other professionals who requested it. The support services and publication of Info-tabac are made possible by the financial support of the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS). Finally, the Canadian Cancer Society Research Institute has been funding innovative research projects to help advance the fight against tobacco addiction. This year, it provided a grant of nearly a million dollars to a team of Quebec researchers to create a smoking cessation program geared towards 12-17 year olds.

The CCS also actively promotes a healthy lifestyle and the benefits of exercise so as to reduce the cancer risks of Quebec men and women. The CCS recommends that people eat fruits and vegetables and exercise every day because studies show that, overall, 30 to 40% of all cancers could be prevented by being active, eating well and maintaining a healthy weight.

The Canadian Cancer Society is a national community-based organization of volunteers whose mission is the eradication of cancer and the enhancement of the quality of life of people living with cancer. For more information on cancer, visit our website www.cancer.ca or call our toll-free, bilingual Cancer Information Service at 1 888 939-3333.

The Jean Coutu Group (PJC) Inc. is proud to be associated with the Quit to Win! Challenge’s fourteenth edition. As part of this association, stores within the PJC Jean Coutu network will distribute 15,000 help kits to smokers who wish to take up the Challenge.

The pharmacists within the PJC Jean Coutu network would like to encourage people to achieve their health goals. Quitting smoking requires a lot of will power, determination and support. It is in light of offering this support that the pharmacists affiliated with the PJC Jean Coutu network have been proud partners of the Quit to Win! Challenge for eleven years.

Novartis Consumer Health Canada Inc. is proud to be sponsoring the Quit to Win! Challenge for a sixth consecutive year.

The Quit to Win! Challenge encourages Quebecers to stop smoking by taking action.

Novartis Consumer Health Inc., a world leader in the area of family health, supplies self-medication products for the treatment and prevention of diseases and ailments with a view to improving health and well-being. The principal categories of over-the-counter products are analgesics, remedies for cough, colds, allergies and digestive problems, skin-care products and smoking cessation treatments.

Experts say that people who combine counseling and pharmacotherapy – such as nicotine replacement therapy – with support from friends and family are more likely to succeed in quitting smoking.

Nicotine replacement products deliver small, steady doses of nicotine into the body, which helps relieve the withdrawal symptoms often felt by people trying to quit smoking.

Novartis offers a complete support program, including a range of nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) and an interactive website (www.thrive2quit.ca) that provides access to resources and to an on-line community where people who want to quit smoking can communicate with one another and with specialists.

Smokers who are trying to quit relate to positive messages. The Quit to Win! Challenge provides positive support and encouragement, which when combined with nicotine replacement therapy products will help many Challenge participants succeed.