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One in three smokers fail to quit in Suffolk – What would make you kick the habit?
The figures showed that there were 1,788 successful quitters (48%), 1,352 who did not quit (37%) and 564 whose outcome was unknown (15%). - Credit: Archant
One in three smokers did not kick the habit despite joining NHS stop smoking schemes last year in Suffolk, new figures show.
Health chiefs last night admitted that more work needs to be done to encourage more smokers to quit in the county.
Data published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre showed that a total of 3,704 smokers signed up to a NHS Stop Smoking Service in the country between April and December last year.
The figures showed that there were 1,788 successful quitters (48%), 1,352 who did not quit (37%) and 564 whose outcome was unknown (15%).
The services, now run by OneLife Suffolk which took over from Live Well Suffolk at the start of this month, take place at various GP surgeries, pharmacists and other health centres across the county.
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Tony Goldson, cabinet member for health and chairman of the county’s Tobacco Control Alliance at Suffolk County Council, said: “While I am pleased that these figures show that almost half of those who wished to quit smoking managed to do so successfully, there is further work to do to encourage more people of all ages to kick the habit.
“Smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable death, which is why it is a priority for health and wellbeing partners in Suffolk.
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“We also need to do all we can to prevent people taking up the smoking habit in the first place.
“As chairman of the alliance that works together with organisations across Suffolk to prevent the harm that smoking can cause to people of all ages, I am very keen to see these successful quit figures increase in the years to come and fewer smokers in Suffolk.”
According to the NHS, smoking is the biggest cause of preventable deaths in England, accounting for more than 80,000 deaths each year nationwide..
One in two smokers will die from a smoking-related disease.
The county council’s healthy lifestyle provider, OneLife Suffolk, offers dedicated support to help anyone who wants to quit in Suffolk.
For more details, call OneLife Suffolk on 01473 272357 or visit www.onelifesuffolk.co.uk.
