Oped by Commissioner Cook published in Round Rock Leader and Online Statesman
Commissioner Terry Cook holds an interactive display detailing the positive health effects of smoking cessation in time spans from minutes to years after quitting, while Kelli Becerra with the Williamson County and Cities Health District holds a giant cigarette replica featuring the harmful chemicals found in tobacco smoke.
I was raised by a good father with a bad habit: smoking. My Dad was a hardcore nicotine addict who didn’t fully comprehend how dangerous tobacco was or how secondhand smoke affected his family. He died too early in life from cancer and congestive heart failure.
As a child who grew up inhaling second hand smoke, and today as your representative on the Central Texas Clean Air Coalition, I am a staunch supporter of all smoking cessation initiatives, such as the Great American Smokeout on Thursday.
“The Great American Smokeout is a campaign that encourages smokers to quit or create a plan to quit by Nov. 16,” said Kelli Becerra with the Williamson County and Cities Health District. “It also brings attention to the immediate benefits of quitting to let smokers know that it is never too late to quit and improve health.”
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