Tobacco use is seen by the armed forces as an impediment to readiness because it is associated with serious health problems, including lung cancer, emphysema, and cardiovascular disease, to name a few. But the military didn’t always see it that way. Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall Historian Kim Holien said the Army used to distribute small packs of cigarettes as part of a Soldier’s rations during World War II.

‘‘It was like currency,” he said. ‘‘The packs could be used to trade [with locals] for other items [when Soldiers were deployed].”

A joint study by the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs released this spring suggested gradually phasing out the use of tobacco products on military installations over a five to 10 year period, a proposal that was ultimately rejected a few months later.

An article by Army Times reporter Kelly Kennedy reported on June 30, 2009 that the Department of Veterans Affairs spent $5 billion to treat smoking-related emphysema in 2008.

The rate of smoking for service personnel is greater than that for the general population. The study found that one in five people smoke in the civilian sector.

According to an Institute of Medicine study, ‘‘Combating Smoking in Military and Veteran Populations 2009,” 32 percent of servicemembers smoke. The Army has the highest rate at 38 percent and the Air Force has the lowest rate at 26 percent. Twenty-two percent of veterans treated by the Veterans Administration are smokers.

Statistics show that deployed servicemembers are 50 percent more likely to smoke than their stateside counterparts. Tobacco is often seen as a stress reliever for military personnel. Some say the nicotine in tobacco products helps them remain alert during long down periods when they still need to be vigilant to face imminent threats.

But according to a study by the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine entitled ‘‘Tobacco and Stress – A Bad Combination,” The physical, mental and emotional changes that result from nicotine addiction make tobacco users even more vulnerable to feelings of stress while under pressure.

The report states, ‘‘[J]ust the thought of losing their ‘fix’ can cause tobacco users to feel stressed. This response could reduce a Soldier’s ability to focus and adversely impact mission performance. Nicotine withdrawal symptoms such as irritability, anger, frustration, anxiety, depression, impaired concentration and restlessness are not compatible with military duties that depend on concentration, critical thought or being alert.”

The Pentagon’s DiLorenzo TRICARE Health Clinic offers smoking cessation classes the first three Wednesdays of the month from noon to 1 p.m. The classes are open to any Pentagon employee. To sign up, call Fit to Win at (703) 692-8898

Clinic Nurse Educator Leslie Wade, who facilitates the class, said it helps participants identify triggers that lead to tobacco use. ‘‘It’s not heavy group therapy,” she said. ‘‘We share suggestions and strategies that work [to quit smoking].”

‘‘Tobacco affects people biologically, socially and psychologically,” Wade said. ‘‘There’s no other drug addiction in which you take so many hits in a single day,” she added, noting that for pack-a-day smokers, that’s 20 cigarettes.

A tobacco cessation Web site run by DoD won the 2009 Horizon Interactive Award this June, an international award that recognizes innovative Web sites. The ‘‘Quit Tobacco—Make Everyone Proud” Web site offers a live chat component with trained tobacco cessation coaches and other features. The military site was one of the few government sites to get recognition.

‘‘This is a wonderful acknowledgement of the effort our government and contract team is putting into the battle against tobacco use among our young enlisted troops,” said Chuck Watkins, chief of TRICARE Management Activity’s, Communications Research and Requirements Branch, in a press release.

The Web site can be accessed at http:⁄⁄www.ucanquit2.org.