Cigarette smokers across New York vow to quit every new year. One Latham man overcame his addiction with the help of a state program.
Christopher Viagrande first began smoking cigarettes as a 19-year-old college student.
“It went from just like that social piece to having them in between classes, if I was walking to or from the campus center or to my dorm,” Viagrande said.
And before he knew it, Viagrande was smoking up to a half-a-pack a day.
According to the New York State Department of Health, Viagrande was one of the approximately 1.4 million New Yorkers in 2023 who smoked cigarettes. That year, the prevalence of cigarette smoking among adults in the state was 9.3%, marking the first time the figure dropped below 10%.
But Viagrande was stilling smoking, and as a father of two sons, did not want his children to see him using cigarettes.
The now 43-year-old tried to quit multiple times in his 20s and 30s, and when he smoked, would often think, “I’m killing myself.”
“It was something I tried to quit, like probably about 20 times in a serious manner and I just couldn’t shake it, it would always come back and get me,” Viagrande said.
He struggled with his addiction until a friend recommended the NYS Quitline — a state phone line that provides services for smokers who want to quit.
Wanting to finally be free from his addiction, Viagrande called the Quitline.
“I knew nothing about the program, I made one phone call, a person picked up on the other end, did a little bit of history with me and the next day I got a package in the mail,” Viagrande said.
He began receiving packages containing nicotine patches and gum, and each week, a representative would call or email him to check on his quitting progress.
Now, Viagrande has been smoke free for eight months and he says it’s because of the Quitline.
“It was a major support for me, along with my family and I felt like I could finally really do this. It was just time, and they stuck with me the whole time,” Viagrande said.
The Quitline’s PR and Communications Manager, Tony Astran, says that follow-up surveys indicate that smokers who engage with the resource have a higher chance of quitting than those who do not.
“It provides free services for anyone who needs assistance looking to overcome nicotine addiction, those can be any type of tobacco products from conventional combustible cigarettes, to vape products and others,” Astran said.
The Quitline also has a new texting program called “Drop the Vape” aimed at helping state residents — particularly young people — quit smoking electronic devices.
According to the state Health Department e-cigarettes remain the most used tobacco product among youth with more than 13% of high school students using vapes in 2024.
In 2018, e-cigarette use among high school students was 27.4%.
Astran says that while the number of young people who smoke e-cigarettes has declined over the years, it’s still an area of concern.
“I think the bigger thing to realize is this, is that number one, when it comes to any of these products with youth, that’s what we don’t want to have starting, especially with thinking about the developing brain with the grip of addiction,” Astran said.
He says e-cigarettes are most likely safer to use than tobacco cigarettes but that doesn’t mean it’s safe.
“The research isn’t fully there and its just not long enough yet to fully understand what vaping products are doing, yes if you had to absolutely choose one or the other, of course vaping is most likely going to have fewer harms than cigarettes,” Astran said.
Viagrande says the first few of months of quitting were the hardest but ever since overcoming his addiction, he has been enjoying a new life.
“You just have to tell yourself, I’m not walking out of this house and driving to the gas station, I’m just not, it’s not an option for me, no matter how bad you feel,” Viagrande said.
