Stub it Out This Stoptober Campaign

Have you signed up for Stoptober yet, where you can get your personalised free personal quit plan to help you put down cigarettes for good? Launched in 2012 and led by Public Health England’s Better Health campaign in collaboration with the NHS, to date more than two million smokers have signed up to the Stoptober challenge, which encourages smokers far and wide to ditch cigarettes for a period of 28 days in the hope that once the month is up, you would have forgotten all about your want to light up. Research suggests if you can last this period, you’re five times more likely to quit for good.

Whilst smoking cigarettes habitually may not seem like such a big deal on a day-to-day basis, the long-term impact and cost on our health and public services is significant. In 2015, there were estimated to be around 79,000 deaths in the UK attributed to smoking or smoking-related diseases, which accounted for 16% of all deaths that year.

What Does the Stoptober Campaign Do?

Public Health England’s Better Health campaign encourages people to make small changes to their life to improve their health; whether that’s eating more fresh fruit and vegetables, doing exercise or doing things like quitting smoking. The dedicated website to all things Stoptober provides a plethora of information, tools, and tricks to help support you throughout the month including an app available for download which will help monitor and track your progress throughout the month.

Remember it’s still not too late to join thousands of others smokers attempting to quit this October. You’ll still be able to sign up to the Stoptober campaign throughout the month and gain the same kind of support whatever and whenever you need it.

There are some great products on the market that your GP will be able to provide you with, but have you thought about trying e-cigarettes? Declared by Public Health England to be up to 95% less harmful than smoking tobacco, e-cigarettes are fast-becoming the go-to device to help smokers quit with an estimated 2.9 million vapers already using e-cigarettes in the UK.

Why E-Cigarettes are Proving so Popular

The tobacco-based cigarettes that you may be used to smoking are packed with thousands of chemicals. They produce carbon monoxide and tar which you are essentially inhaling into your body’s every time you smoke. That’s unfortunately why we still see millions of deaths worldwide attributed to smoking every year.

E-cigarettes use a rechargeable battery to power an atomiser that in turn heats a nicotine-based e-liquid until vapour forms, which the user then inhales to simulate the act of smoking. E-liquids are available in a number of traditional tobacco flavoured options as well as some fruitier concoctions. These abate any sugar cravings you may experience in your withdrawal from tobacco (tobacco contains up to 20% natural sugars). Additionally, e-liquid is available in a number of nicotine strength options. Therefore, over the course of time you’ll be able to slowly reduce your nicotine levels completely.

By breaking the month into manageable chunks, before you know it you’ll be smoke-free! Stoptober aside, it’s never too late to attempt to stop smoking. It’s a tough challenge to take, but in hindsight, a healthy physical and mental decision. A new you will be forever grateful for your efforts, whenever they may be.

Stub it out this Stoptober campaign.