• World Health Organization - Why is tobacco a public health priority?
  
  
• National Institute of Drug Abuse InfoFacts" Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products - Through the use of cigarettes, cigars, and chewing tobacco, nicotine is one of the most heavily used addictive drugs in the United States.
  
  
• Project Breathe White Paper Executive Summary

• New Surgeon General's Report Focuses on the Effects of Secondhand Smoke
  
  

I am in favor of any program or effort that encourages students to not use tobacco. So many people talk about smoking as a risk but not chewing. I know first hand what the damage from chewing tobacco can be. I would like to have children, parents, coaches, and teachers learn from my mistakes. I encourage them to use Project Breathe and related programs to empower students to make good decisions, including the one not to use tobacco in any form.

Gruen von Behrens

Gruen was a self described “handsome young man that was active, athletic, and looking forward to a great life”. He first tried spit tobacco as a 13-year-old baseball player. Everyone else in baseball was chewing and he felt pressured to try it. By 17, he had full-blown squamous cell carcinoma - cancer of the mouth. Now, half of his neck muscles, his lymph nodes and half of his tongue have been removed in an effort to save his life. He has undergone over 30 surgeries and is lucky to be alive.

Van Behrens has another message to convey, too. It is one his cancer taught him through experience. A person cannot be measured by their outward appearance. It is the qualities inside that make a human being. Everyone should be treated with respect and dignity, no matter how they look, he often tells kids. He is an impressive speaker and can influence audiences in ways no one else can.

Click here to view students at the James Singleton Charter School, Dryades YMCA, in New Orleans pledge to be tobacco-free.

Click here to see elementary students from James Singleton Charter School in New Orleans using Project Breathe related materials.

Macromedia Flash Player is required for the videos listed above. The video will open in another window.

National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion's Tobacco Information and Prevention Source (TIPS) provides Seven Deadly Myths, hosted by cover model, entrepreneur and smoking cessation advocate Christy Turlington. The video clips explore some of the common myths about smoking and empower women to become or stay smoke-free.
You will need RealPlayer ® to view this video clip.

Link to Basic Lung Sounds

Watch for our upcoming podcasts that will give you the latest info on what's happening.

What do I like to do that requires breathing?
Talking
Singing
Whistling