It's time to put out those cigarettes [Sentinel and Enterprise, Fitchburg, Mass.]

The first step to snuffing a smoking habit is to make quitting a top priority, according to Marianne Pappas, director of the Take Charge occupational-health program at HealthAlliance Hospital/Leominster.

The hospital is running a series of free smoking-cessation seminars beginning next month at its Burbank/Fitchburg campus, each with a different theme and each recognizing that a nicotine addiction is a hard thing to overcome, Pappas said.

Smokers are well aware of the health risks their behavior poses, especially as new research continues to surface about the effects of smoking, Pappas said.

"I know physicians and nurses who smoke," she said. "You would think the knowledge (about risks) would deter it. But it's an addiction -- and a powerful one -- and you have to treat it as such."

Even President Barack Obama sneaks an occasional cigarette, according to his recent physical records -- his doctors reported Obama as being in good health, but urged the president to cut back on smoking.

You have to be motivated to quit, because temptation will hit you during the activities or moods in which you're accustomed to lighting up, said Pappas.

"The behavioral aspects of smoking are really significant, beyond just the physiological aspects," she said.

Counselors advise smokers to keep busy through their cravings, which usually only last two to three minutes, eat healthy foods -- such as carrot or celery sticks -- to replace the

action of smoking, throw out all their cigarettes, and offer themselves small rewards, according to the state Department of Public Health.

Pappas said the rising cost of cigarettes -- nearly $8 per pack -- is also good motivation to quit.

In the case of someone like Obama, quitting may be difficult because he will likely not be able to put a great deal of time and focus into it -- which is the same challenge facing many busy, overworked and stressed-out smokers, Pappas said.

She also said that Obama is a healthy, educated, athletic person -- bucking the stereotype that smokers are uneducated or in otherwise poor health.

"It's just probably not on his list of things to do," she said. "Obviously, he's got the resources. You have to make that a priority, taking care of yourself. You have to have a plan, and it has to be something that you want to do."

HealthAlliance, like many workplaces, last year banned tobacco use inside and outside, and offered services to help employees quit smoking, Communications Director Mary Lourdes Burke said.

The counseling has proven to be successful, and by not allowing smoking on campus, Burke said the hospital is promoting a healthier image.

"It just goes hand-in-hand with what our goals are," she said. "A lot of businesses are going in this direction."

For many smokers, the cigarette break is a long tradition in the workplace, so if a company is cracking down on tobacco use, or a smoker is trying to quit, it's helpful for them to band together with fellow smokers and come up with a plan to support one another, Pappas said.

"Get a pact going and support each other. Some people just want to get through that eight-hour shift without smoking," she said. "If you think about it, you have to be pretty motivated on some of these New England days to go out and smoke, especially if you can't smoke at your building."

The HealthAlliance smoking-cessation classes run every Thursday night for six weeks, starting April 1, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., at the Burbank campus Cancer Center in the Brian Bergevin conference room. The classes are free and people may attend as many seminars as they choose.

The following is the schedule of class themes: April 1, health effects of smoking/personal evaluation and plan; April 8, benefits of being a non-smoker/decisional balance; April 15, obstacles in quitting/coping techniques; April 22, controlling weight/situational smoking; April 29, dealing with stress/relaxation techniques; and May 6, quitting forever/how to remain a non-smoker and avoid relapse.