We found little evidence of effectiveness of HRLAs for promotion of exercise/improved diets .
Conclusions Overall , there is limited evidence suggesting that HRLAs are cost-effective in terms of changing health-related knowledge , behaviours or health outcomes .
The evidence that does exist indicates that HRLAs are only cost-effective when they target behaviours likely to have a large impact on overall health-related quality of life .
Background Development of new peer or lay health-related lifestyle advisor ( HRLA ) roles is one response to the need to enhance public engagement in , and improve cost-effectiveness of , health improvement interventions .
This article synthesis es evidence on the cost-effectiveness of HRLA interventions aim ed at adults in developed countries , derived from the first systematic review of the effectiveness , cost-effectiveness , equity and acceptability of different types of HRLA role .
Duration of smoking abstinence and success in quitting.
BACKGROUND For most smokers , quitting is a difficult process . Many smokers try to quit repeatedly before they succeed , with some relapsing even after a lengthy period of abstinence . Few population -based cohort studies have examined relapse among former smokers . Quantification of the relationship between the duration of abstinence and the likelihood of continued abstinence is important for the evaluation of ongoing public health interventions and the design of smoking-cessation programs . PURPOSE We analyzed longitudinal data from a large , representative population cohort of former smokers and estimated the probability of future relapse for different duration s of abstinence at baseline ( e.g. , 1 to <3 months and 3 to < 6 months ) . METHODS From the 1990 California Tobacco Survey that used a r and om-digit-dialed computer-assisted telephone survey to interview 24296 California adults ( baseline interview ) from June 1990 through February 1991 , a stratified r and om sample of 4642 adults was reinterviewed from March 1992 through July 1992 . Both surveys assessed smoking status using st and ard questions about the lifetime use of 100 cigarettes and the self-classification of current smoking : 1 ) " Have you smoked at least 100 cigarettes in your lifetime ? " and 2 ) " Do you smoke cigarettes now ? " We included all 1449 former smokers at baseline interview who answered " yes " to the first question and " no " to the second and who also provided a valid date at both of the surveys when asked , " When did you last smoke regularly ? " All data were weighted to account for the study design and to ensure that the estimates were representative of the California population by age , sex , race/ethnicity , education , and geographic region . RESULTS Only about 12 % of the former smokers who had quit for less than 1 month at baseline remained continuously abstinent at the follow-up interview . This percentage increased to 25 % for those who had quit from 1 to less than 3 months ; it increased again to 52 % if the duration of quitting was from 3 to less than 6 months , but it increased only slightly to 59.2 % for those who had quit from 6 to less than 12 months . Overall , the likelihood of remaining continuously abstinent until the follow-up interview was about 90 % for former smokers who had quit for 3 months or longer and 95 % for those who had quit for 1 year or longer . CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATION S We suggest that self-reported cessation for more than 3 months be considered as an intermediate criterion for success both in longitudinal studies and the cross-sectional evaluation of community interventions . If a more stringent criterion is needed , we recommend self-reported cessation for at least 1 year
We found little evidence of effectiveness of HRLAs for promotion of exercise/improved diets .
Conclusions Overall , there is limited evidence suggesting that HRLAs are cost-effective in terms of changing health-related knowledge , behaviours or health outcomes .
The evidence that does exist indicates that HRLAs are only cost-effective when they target behaviours likely to have a large impact on overall health-related quality of life .
Background Development of new peer or lay health-related lifestyle advisor ( HRLA ) roles is one response to the need to enhance public engagement in , and improve cost-effectiveness of , health improvement interventions .
This article synthesis es evidence on the cost-effectiveness of HRLA interventions aim ed at adults in developed countries , derived from the first systematic review of the effectiveness , cost-effectiveness , equity and acceptability of different types of HRLA role .