A CAMPAIGN has been launched to inspire people to put smoking behind them.

Public Health Dorset is encouraging people who would like to stop smoking, to think carefully about their reasons for wanting to quit, and then to make a pledge to take action in 2015.

Year-on-year thousands of people attempt to quit smoking during the months of January and February. Evidence shows that people who make a pledge and receive support are more likely to be successful.

Every smoker has their own reasons for wanting to quit, with family, money and health all being strong motivating factors.

The campaign, called Make Tobacco History, seeks to inspire people by telling the stories of other local people who have either quit smoking or who will be attempting to quit during January.

These are stories about the struggles that people have had, how they’ve overcome them and how much better life can be after smoking.

Director of Public Health Dorset, Dr David Phillips said: “The story of smoking cigarettes is largely a story of the 20th century, when it is estimated more than 100m lives were lost as a result of smoking.

“Over the last thirty years we've seen a dramatic reduction in the proportion of people who smoke, and in many of our communities smoking is now quite rare. “For individuals as well as for communities, there is now an opportunity to assign smoking to the past once and for all, breaking the link with the next generation. The benefits of quitting for individual lives are huge, but each successful quitter also helps to draw the curtain on smoking for good, and the benefits of a smoke-free society for future generations are enormous.

“Taking that next step to becoming an ex-smoker is no easy task, but by making a firm commitment, getting the right support, and by knowing you’re not alone in trying to quit, your chances of being successful are greatly improved.”

The campaign will be running throughout January with posters in selected sites across Dorset, along with radio adverts and messages on social media.

For more information, support and to declare your reason to quit smoking, visit maketobaccohistory.co.uk or follow #maketobaccohistory on social media.

The facts about smoking...

MORE than 570,000 people have died in England in the last eight years from a smoking related condition – that is 195 people each day but successfully quitting has significant health benefits straight away:

  • Within 20 minutes your blood pressure and pulse rate return to normal
  • After one year the risk of dying from heart disease is reduced by half
  • Within two years the risk of stroke is reduced to half and within 5 years it will be the same as a non-smoker
  • Within 10 years your risk of developing lung cancer falls to half that of a smoker n after stopping for 15 years your risk of heart disease is similar to that of someone who has never smoked.
  • If you are parent who smokes, your children are three times more likely to pick up the habit.
  • The average smoker spends more than £200 a month on their habit. That’s more than £2,500 a year.