The North Carolina Health and Wellness Trust Fund's smoking prevention and cessations programs helped cut youth tobacco use in a state that historically has had high rates of smoking, according to a study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC).

WRAL reported Dec. 16 that the study, conducted by the UNC School of Medicine's Tobacco Prevention and Evaluation Program, showed that cigarette use among high-school students and middle-school students dropped from 5.8 percent and 20.3 percent in 2005, respectively, to 4.5 percent and 19 percent in 2007.

The study also found that QuitlineNC, a telephone support service for those trying to stop using tobacco, saw a 31.5-percent increase in calls from youths and a 63-percent increase in calls from adults in its third year of operations.

"Relative to other major tobacco-producing states, our evaluation shows North Carolina's investment in youth tobacco prevention is substantial, and the positive outcomes that have resulted are truly encouraging," said Adam Goldstein, director of the UNC tobacco-prevention project.