Researchers from Hadassah, the Hebrew University, the IDF Medical Corps, and the Israel Cancer Association have shown for the first time in a new study that an SMS message-based smoking cessation program can help soldiers quit.
The findings were published today in the scientific journal BMC Public Health.
One month after quitting, 20.6% of the participants reported that they had not smoked a cigarette in the past week. A high percentage of participants were involved in the program, with 82.5% sending at least one keyword.
Most of the soldiers (96.8%) found the program easy to use and most (84.1%) recommended it to their friends. Self-belief in the ability to quit smoking at the start of the program predicted remaining in the program: 50% of those who believed in themselves remained in the program, compared with only 4.8% of those who did not believe in themselves. The study proves, for the first time, that a smoking cessation program based on messages to a mobile phone is applicable to military service conditions.