you may need to know about
Smoking
Giving up smoking
You've thought about it, you've talked about it. Perhaps
you've even made several attempts at it. The fact is, the
longer you put off your decision to stop smoking, the more
likely it is you never will.
Did you know Smoking 20 cigarettes a day over an average
lifetime will cost you about £100,000 (allowing for inflation).
Within a year of stopping smoking your risk of serious heart
disease is halved. Women who smoke 20 cigarettes a day are
four times more likely to develop breast cancer.
Don't waste time - with the right information and advice
you can learn how to wean yourself off cigarettes and, most
importantly, help yourself to stay an ex-smoker for life.
Smoking kills 120,000 people in Britain every
year. It's very addictive and many people who start smoking
regularly, carry on until the day they die even though they
have tried to stop many times. Most smokers take up smoking
in their school years.
Although the risks are obvious and serious more
teenagers are still smoking.
A recent survey said that more than one in eight
school pupils in England between 11 and 15 smoke regularly.
The trouble is that the younger you are when you start smoking,
the worse the effects on your health.
A lot of serious, and often fatal, diseases
are caused by smoking. Smoking can also increase everyday
complaints such as coughing, sneezing and shortness of breath
when you exert yourself.
Passive smoking
Breathing in smoke from other people's cigarettes
is called passive smoking. It's made up of two types of smoke:
smoke from the burning end of the cigarette - sidestream smoke
smoke breathed out by the smoker - mainstream smoke.
Did you know?
Half of all young people in England live in
homes with at least one smoker.
This is what passive smoking can do to you:
If you are 16 or under:
increased acute respiratory illness in early
childhood (including infections)
chronic cough, phlegm and wheeze
chronic middle ear effusions (glue ear)
reduced levels and growth of lung function
increased aggravation of asthma
If you are over 18:
irritation to the eyes, nose and throat
headaches, dizziness and sickness
aggravation of asthma and allergies
increased risk of coronary heart disease
10 to 30 per cent increased risk of lung cancer
for non-smokers exposed to passive smoking over long periods.
You can get hooked on smoking extremely quickly
and you are more likely to smoke if:
your parents smoke
you have older brothers or sisters who smoke
your parents don't mind you smoking
you have friends who smoke
So watch out and look after yourself.
Did you know
Smoking is actually not as common as you may
think. It's not true that everyone smokes. In fact, over half
of all 11-15 year olds have never smoked.
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