Military Smoker Population Causes Concern

While an estimated 25 percent of Americans smoke, the military’s numbers hover at 34 percent, said Col. Gerald Wayne Talcott with the Air Force Medical Support Agency in Falls Church, Va. That represents an increase of 4 percent for the military between 1998 and 2002. To reduce the percentages, most base health and wellness centers offer smoking cessation classes, and nicotine-replacement therapies are available. In addition, the Defense Department is working to help primary care physicians spot tobacco use early and provide messages about quitting. The Tricare Web site at www.tricare.osd.mil also offers information about why and how members should kick the habit. And as a pocketbook inducement, the Army and Air Force Exchange Service may not discount tobacco products more than 5 percent below what they would cost outside a military installation. This is a change from deeper discounts that were once offered, officials said.