Quitting smoking this New Year can give you money for household bills, fuel, food, or even towards a holiday. If you smoke 10 a day, you could be spending nearly £40 a week – that’s more than £2,000 a year.
Going smoke-free gives your lungs the chance to repair, and your breathing will get easier. It is also proven to boost mental health.
With the right support, quitting can be easier and less stressful than you might think. Using an alternative nicotine product such as patches, lozenges or a vape will reduce cravings and keep you more comfortable, while you get used to not smoking tobacco.
Work out your quitting journey with support from your local stop smoking service and you are up to three times more likely to stop for good.
Sarah Wise, Consultant Midwife at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust said: “If anyone is expecting a baby in 2023, quitting smoking is one of the biggest gifts you can give to them for their future. Not only giving the baby the best start in life, but also improving your own health so you increase the chances of being there to support them for many years to come.”
To support people with not smoking whilst they are admitted to hospital, the NHS is providing patients who stay for longer than a day access to an alternative nicotine product and a visit from the hospital Quit Together team. Help is also available for staff and visitors, with everyone being asked not to use tobacco on site and use an alternative product if they need to.
Andrew Burgess, a former cardiac ward patient at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby said: “For anyone else thinking about becoming smoke-free in hospital, I would say to stick with it! – especially if they are in hospital for a week or more. It’s a good idea to use being in hospital to help you quit, because you can’t go off the ward to smoke anyway!
“I certainly hope to stay smoke-free because of my health. I can feel the benefits of not smoking already and don’t want to be in hospital again. I would recommend Quit Together to friends. It has been good to have someone to talk to and to have access to a support worker and patches in hospital.“
The health advice is supported by ASH (Action on Smoking and Health), which also wanted to stress how stopping could play a major role in helping to tackle the current cost of living issues. It highlighted how the cost of smoking as a percentage of average disposal income is 9 per cent nationally – but in North East Lincolnshire it rises to 11.4 per cent.
ASH Chief Executive, Deborah Arnott, said: “People who live in poverty and smoke do try just as often as others to stop, but the stressful circumstances they live in make it tougher to succeed. Getting help increases your chances of successfully stopping smoking threefold, and once you’ve succeeded the benefits are multiple, particularly for those living in difficult circumstances.
Everyone knows that stopping smoking puts money in your pocket and improves your physical health, but research shows that after six weeks or so ex-smokers also find that they have lower levels of stress and anxiety than if they’d carried on smoking, equivalent to taking anti-depressants. So, if you smoke, why not make stopping your new year’s resolution and get 2023 off to a great start.”
For free advice and to find your local stop smoking service, visit Quit smoking – BetterHealth – NHS (www.nhs.uk) Or you can contact North East Lincolnshire Council’s service on 01472 325500, if not manned please leave a message and calls will be returned.
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