Ahead of World No-Tobacco Day, Discovery Vitality offers members a new way to quit smoking with Quit Genius

Johannesburg | Discovery Vitality has partnered with Quit Genius, a technology-enabled digital clinic, which confirms a 52% quit success rate in helping smokers kick the habit. The mobile app features include a dedicated Quit Coach, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for smoking cessation intervention and an audio-visual library of resources to help prevent cravings.

Dinesh Govender, CEO of Discovery Vitality said it was imperative for the behaviour-change programme to source a multi-pronged intervention to assist smokers with quitting. “It is an understatement to say that quitting smoking is difficult. Although 22% of the global population (1.3 billion people) currently use tobacco, data tells us that most smokers want to quit. Unfortunately, fewer than one in ten smokers succeed in quitting every year. Vitality is determined to help smokers quit for the long term.”

Govender says Quit Genius uses a unique approach, providing users with holistic support which results in a higher success rate compared to traditional methods. “We’ve found a viable solution to help tackle addiction to nicotine, one that is powerful in its use of technology, psychology and pharmacology to help people quit. This is because we understand that professional support can significantly improve a smoker’s chance of quitting for the long term and ultimately aims to reduce the myriad, well-known negative health effects of smoking.”

“The programme is comprehensive and we see why it has worked for thousands of former-smokers worldwide. Valued at around R4,000 per year, we’re providing this to Vitality members at no cost. This is our commitment to helping our members improve their health,” says Govender.

The Quit Genius programme includes these aspects of support:

1. Firstly, a Quit Coach, who is an accredited cessation specialist providing one-on-one support
2. Virtual Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, delivered via bitesize audio sessions and interactive exercises to help members learn new techniques to deal with their craving triggers
3. Tracking tools to monitor triggers, number of cigarettes smoked, money saved and health progress
4. The biological component includes advice and usage guidance for nicotine replacement therapy, which manages withdrawal symptoms and side effects.

“Our evidence-based treatment is increasingly valued for its effectiveness and improved outcomes,” said Maroof Ahmed, M.D., co-founder and COO of Quit Genius. “Quit Genius helps people deal with craving triggers and overcome their nicotine addiction as demonstrated by our clinically validated, industry-leading quit rate of 52%. We’re excited to partner with Discovery Vitality to improve the health and quality of life of its members.” Click here to sign up. #LiveLifeWithVitality

Notes to editors:

The healthcare costs and lost productivity associated with smoking drains 1.4 trillion US dollars from the global economy each year. Quitting smoking has health benefits no matter how much or how long someone has smoked, but the sooner they quit the greater the health benefits will be.

Smoking, particularly the nicotine in cigarettes, are highly addictive. As with such drugs as cocaine and heroin it activates the brain’s reward circuits. However, the effect of nicotine wears off quickly leading people to feelings of withdrawal, such as irritability and anxiety. This motivates them to light up another cigarette and so the cycle continues. People can quickly become addicted to smoking and suffer both physical and psychological withdrawal symptoms when they try to stop.

The harmful effects of smoking on physical health are well-known, including the substantial increase in the risk of developing lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (a chronic lung disease that makes it difficult to breathe) and coronary heart disease. Tobacco use is responsible for 8 million deaths each year worldwide, with 1.2 million of these being non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke.

We may not be aware of the relationship between smoking and mental health. While people are twice as likely to smoke if they have a mental illness, what is not commonly known is that smoking also increases mental illness symptoms, including for depression and anxiety. Additionally, having a mental illness may make it harder to stop smoking.