Thousands of East Lancashire smokers to take part in mass quit

6:00pm Tuesday 18th September 2012 in News Photograph of the Author By Bill Jacobs, Local government reporter

THOUSANDS of smokers across East Lancashire are being urged to join the first-ever national mass quit.

Borough health experts want them to sign up to the Department of Health’s “Stoptober” campaign.

The new “stub them out” drive which runs throughout October, offers smokers a free preparation pack, 28-day Quit Calendar and Health & Wealth wheel. Smokers will also receive support through a daily messaging service.

Blackburn with Darwen has an estimated 25,700 smokers and East Lancashire has one of the highest percentages of smokers in the country.

Dominic Harrison, borough director of public health for Blackburn, said: “We want to help as many people as possible in Blackburn with Darwen to become smoke free. There is a wide range of support available.

“For example our local stop smoking services are doing a great job, and last year in Blackburn with Darwen 839 people successfully quit with their support.”

Doctor Chris Clayton, head of Blackburn with Darwen NHS Commissioning, said: “As well as the financial benefits of stopping smoking, those undertaking the 28 day programme will experience physical improvements including a better sense of smell and taste and more energy.”

Stop smoking sessions are also available in Burnley, Hyndburn, Pendle, Ribble Valley and Rossendale.

For more details on sessions, and to make an appointment, call 01254 380424.

Comments(6)

mavrick says...
9:28pm Tue 18 Sep 12

I like the term, we want to help everyone to quit, what they mean is they want to force everyone to quit. Taxes going up again me thinks.

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Chris P Bacon says...
9:58pm Tue 18 Sep 12

I think those who have seen the catastrophic consequences of someone's inability to stop having become an addict of the world's most devastating drug genuinely and sincerely DO want to help people to quit. The toll on the nation is appalling and the fewer who take it up in the first place, the better.

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ToffeeGuy says...
11:04pm Tue 18 Sep 12

Please can you tell me what time the mass is at, which church it's at and what time do we quit? And won't the priest mind all these people walking out mid-service? Very rude.

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Bacupbloke says...
6:08am Wed 19 Sep 12

Chris P Bacon wrote:
I think those who have seen the catastrophic consequences of someone's inability to stop having become an addict of the world's most devastating drug genuinely and sincerely DO want to help people to quit. The toll on the nation is appalling and the fewer who take it up in the first place, the better.
The campaign will reach the sensible smokers who want to quit. The others will die a horrible death. They even stand outside Blackburn Royal in their dressing gowns holding their drips so they can have a few fags, not bothering to let their treatment work properly. No wonder there is a shortage of cash for lung centres. East Lanca has more hardcore smokers because it is a badly educated area. While the rest of the country is giving up, local people will go on killing themselves. Serves them right if they do die painful deaths; the warnings are on every packet.

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mavrick says...
8:36am Wed 19 Sep 12

Is it any worse than dying of dementia, or alcoholism,

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Noiticer says...
10:03am Wed 19 Sep 12

Dying from the effects of smoking and alcoholism is avoidable and recent evidence shows that eating a healthy, low fat diet can delay or avoid the onset of dementia so there's hope for you yet 'Mavrick'. It laso saves you loads of money to spend on more beneficail pursuits.

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