Three Tips for for Keeping Lungs Healthier in 2024

TRENTON (December 28, 2023) –  As we end the holiday season and look to the start of the New Year, it’s a good time to consider resolutions that can help keep you and your family healthier.  The American Lung Association provides these tips for lung health:

Quit Smoking: This time of year, millions of people across New Jersey make resolutions to take on personal challenges, accomplish a significant goal or improve their life for the new year. This year, the American Lung Association in New Jersey is encouraging everyone who smokes, vapes or uses other tobacco products to resolve to begin their quit journey in 2024, and provides tips and resources at Lung.org/Quit-Smoking. Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease here in New Jersey, killing 11,780 people each year. Nationally, 16 million Americans live with a tobacco-related disease. While it’s best to quit as early as possible, quitting smoking at any age will enhance the length and quality of your life.

Lung Helpline: Not sure where to start? Call the Lung Association’s free Lung Helpline and Tobacco Quitline at 1-800-LUNGUSA, which is staffed with licensed registered nurses, respiratory therapists and certified tobacco treatment specialists. Or visit the Lung Association website

Talk to your Healthcare Provider: Talking to a healthcare provider about your plan to quit smoking is an important step. With your doctor’s help, you can include cessation medication into your tobacco treatment plan, which can double your chances of quitting successfully. There are seven FDA-approved medications that are proven to help you quit. Most insurance covers these medications without cost-sharing. 

Get Help from a Proven Resource: The American Lung Association offers resources to help adults and teens to quit all tobacco products, including Freedom From Smoking? to help adults quit, and Not-On-Tobacco? (N-O-T), which is specially designed for teens who are ready to quit.

Quit. Don’t Switch. E-cigarettes are tobacco products, and the FDA has not found any e-cigarette to be safe and effective in helping smokers quit. Switching to e-cigarettes does not mean quitting. Quitting means ending your addiction to nicotine.

For more information about quitting tobacco, visit the American Lung Association website at Lung.org or call the Lung HelpLine at 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872). Most health insurance covers medications and counseling to help you quit. If you don’t have insurance, you can enroll until January 15 in most states. For more information, visit www.lung.org/openenrollment.

Stay Up to Date on Vaccines. Get your COVID-19 and flu shots (and RSV if eligible). The best way to stay healthy and protect others is to be up to date on your recommended COVID-19 vaccinations and make sure all of your loved ones – from those aged 6 months to 100+ years – are also up to date on theirs. The updated COVID-19 shot is expected to provide protection against the most recent variants and subvariants. It’s also time for your annual flu shot.

This year for the first time, RSV vaccines are available for adults 60 and older and for individuals who are pregnant between weeks 32-36 of pregnancy to protect newborns born during RSV season. There is also a preventive antibody to help protect babies against RSV. Staying current with all your vaccinations is key to protecting your health.

Order free COVID-19 tests: The government is providing at least four free COVID-19 tests per household. People can order these at CovidTests.gov. It is good to have tests on hand so if you or someone in your household starts having symptoms that could be COVID-19, you can test right away.

Test for Radon – radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer and during January for National Radon Action Month, the American Lung Association is urging everyone to help save lives by testing their home for radon and mitigating if high levels are detected. The Lung Association’s “State of Lung Cancer” report reveals that it is detected at high levels in about 10% of homes in New Jersey. The naturally occurring radioactive gas emitted from the ground. Radon is odorless, tasteless and colorless, and can enter a home through cracks in floors, basement walls, foundations and other openings. Radon can be present at high levels inside homes, schools and other buildings.

In New Jersey, a limited number of no-cost professional radon testings are available with the American Lung Association’s partner, Protect Environmental. Learn more and sign up at Lung.org/Protect-Environmental.

Learn more about radon testing and mitigation at Lung.org/radon and take the Lung Association’s free Radon Basics course at Lung.org/Radon-Basics.

To speak with a lung health or medical expert about quitting smoking, staying up to date on vaccines or lung health and radon, contact Val Gleason at 302-275-2277 or Val.Gleason@Lung.org.

About the American Lung Association

The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy and research. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to champion clean air for all; to improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families; and to create a tobacco-free future. For more information about the American Lung Association, which has a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and is a Platinum-Level GuideStar Member, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org. To support the work of the American Lung Association, find a local event at Lung.org/events.