New Year campaign encourages smokers to seek support to help quit

Make 2018 the year you give up smoking for good

A campaign has been launched which aims to encourage smokers to give up smoking with help from NHS Smokefree and local services.

The campaign encourages smokers to seek support to help them quit, which will start to improve the quality of their blood and rid them of harmful poisons.

Every cigarette smoked releases over 4,000 chemicals into the body, including more than 70 known cancer-causing compounds, cadmium - a metal used in batteries - and carbon monoxide.

Elevated levels of these substances in the bloodstream can lead to an increased risk of major damage to the body. For example, exposure to cadmium for a long period of time can damage the kidneys and bones and carbon monoxide increases the risk of blood clots and coronary heart disease.

Research has shown that regularly smoking 20 or more cigarettes a day doubles the chances of developing kidney cancer when compared with a non-smoker.

Rochdale Borough Council is backing the Public Health England (PHE) campaign.

Councillor Sara Rowbotham, the council's cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: "At the start of every year a lot of us make resolutions which can be difficult to stick to, even if we have the best intentions.

"If you want to give up smoking this year do not worry, there is lots of support out there to help you succeed and you do not have to do it alone."

Andrea Fallon, the council's director of public health, said: "The new year is a great time for making changes to improve our health. Smoking remains the biggest cause of long-term disease and early death in the UK and each year, over 500 people die too soon in our borough because of it.

"We know that giving up smoking is hard, and people might attempt to quit several times before they finally manage to kick the habit. The important thing is to keep trying, as giving up smoking is the single biggest thing you can do to improve your health and eventually you will achieve it. So if you are ready to make a change for you and your family by going smoke free during 2018, we have lots of different ways we can help you to to give up."

For free, proven support and a range of tools to help quit smoking:

Contact the Living Well Team on 01706 751190.

Visit NHS Smokefree:

https://www.nhs.uk/smokefree