Renowned Restaurateur Joe Bastianich Helps Map a Blueprint to Quit for Smokers in the New Year

PARSIPPANY, N.J., Dec. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Renowned restaurateur and judge of FOX's Master Chef Joe Bastianich is helping smokers, chefs and fellow food service industry workers quit smoking in the New Year. Bastianich is teaming up with the Blueprint to Quit program, available exclusively at Walmart, a comprehensive resource designed to help smokers address both the physical and psychological aspects of quitting smoking.

Bastianich is a former smoker, and knows many in the food industry struggle with this addiction. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 30 percent of people in foodservice and preparation smoke, making this field of work the second-highest population of smokers amongst U.S. occupation groups.¹ Smoking can impact senses like taste and smell,² but quitting helps improve these senses within a few days.³

"My passion for food – on top of my health – was a huge factor in my decision to quit smoking. For 18 years I depended on cigarettes and after a dozen attempts, I was finally able to quit with the help of NicoDerm CQ and support from my friends and family," said Joe,* who along with business partners, Chef Mario Batali and Lidia Bastianich opened nine restaurants in New York, including Babbo and Del Posto, as well as Eataly, the famed artisanal Italian marketplace. "Support was key in my quit attempt and why I stand behind programs like Blueprint to Quit – which combines resources like quit-smoking aids and an online quitting resource to help people quit smoking."

As a former smoker, Bastianich recommends the following tips to those looking to quit in the New Year:

1. Develop an exercise routine you can stick with.
2. Identify and eliminate those "smoking moments" in your life, such as having a cigarette with your morning coffee or when out with friends.
3. Learn how to cope with the physical and psychological aspects of smoking addiction.
4. Look at the challenges of quitting in digestible bites of time instead of the "big picture."
5. Make a public promise to quit smoking to gain the support of others.

The National Restaurant Association (NRA), a leading business organization for the restaurant industry, recently established Blueprint to Quit as the official quit-smoking program for its members.

"As restaurants' champion, we are committed to educating and equipping our members to be as successful as possible in their foodservice roles – and that means helping them quit smoking," said James Balda, senior vice president of membership and business innovation for the NRA. "We're proud to call Blueprint to Quit the official quit-smoking program of the NRA because we recognize the benefits quitting can have on both the health and professional success of our members."

Blueprint to Quit will be providing resources, including a supply of QuitNet cards to NRA members that sign-up and make a commitment to quit smoking in the New Year.

Blueprint to Quit is available exclusively at Walmart and provides smokers with a two-part plan, including nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), such as Nicorette gum and NicoDerm CQ patches, to help with the physical cravings and withdrawal symptoms associated with smoking, and behavioral support through QuitNet. QuitNet is available online and can help with the emotional changes associated with quitting smoking. QuitNet.com is the web's largest quit-smoking community and provides smokers with access to trained experts and an online interactive community, as well as a variety of quitting materials and self-assessment tools.

For more information, please visit www.walmart.com/blueprinttoquit.

*Joe Bastianich is a paid spokesperson for GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Consumer Healthcare and speaks on behalf of the Blueprint to Quit program sponsored by GSK; however his opinions are his own.

About Blueprint to Quit
The Blueprint to Quit comprehensive quit-smoking program is a two-part plan that helps smokers address both the physical cravings and the behavioral changes associated with quitting smoking. The first part of the program involves using an NRT stop-smoking aid to address the physical cravings and withdrawal symptoms, and the second part uses a behavioral support program (BSP) on QuitNet to facilitate the changing of behaviors commonly associated with smoking.

About QuitNet
Healthways is a health and well-being improvement company that strives to make the world a healthier place, and is the creator of QuitNet. QuitNet addresses the changing behaviors commonly associated with smoking. The program offers smokers who are interested in quitting a 24/7 online support program with self-assessment tools, experts and message boards to provide smokers with the support they need. QuitNet is an online BSP.

About GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare
GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare is one of the world's largest over-the-counter consumer healthcare products companies. Its well-known brands include Nicorette^® and NicoDerm^® CQ, the leading smoking cessation products; alli, the only FDA-OTC weight loss aid; as well as medicine cabinet staples, Aquafresh^®, Sensodyne^®, Tums^®, and Breathe Right^®, all of which are trademarks owned by and/or licensed to GlaxoSmithKline Group of Companies.

About GlaxoSmithKline
GlaxoSmithKline – one of the world's leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies – is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. For company information visit GSK.com.

About the National Restaurant Association
Founded in 1919, the National Restaurant Association is the leading business association for the restaurant industry, which comprises 970,000 restaurant and foodservice outlets and a workforce of nearly 13 million employees. We represent the industry in Washington, D.C., and advocate on its behalf. We operate the industry's largest trade show (NRA Show May 18-21, 2013, in Chicago); leading food safety training and certification program (ServSafe); unique career-building high school program (the NRAEF's ProStart, including the National ProStart Invitational April 19-21, 2013, in Baltimore, Md.); as well as the Kids LiveWell program promoting healthful kids' menu options. For more information, visit www.restaurant.org and find us on Twitter @WeRRestaurants, Facebook and YouTube.

¹ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Current Cigarette Smoking Prevalence Among Working Adults --- United States, 2004-2010. September 30, 2011. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6038a2.htm#tab2.

 ² The association between smoking and smell and taste impairment in the general population. Journal of Neurology. August 2008. By Vennermann, M.M., Hummel, T., Berger, K.

³ U.S. National Library of Medicine. National Institutes of Health. Benefits of quitting tobacco. Available at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/007532.htm.

SOURCE GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare