22 March 2018
With the release of Jersey’s latest Smoking Profile Report, pharmacists around the Island are encouraging smokers to use their support to quit smoking.
The Stop Smoking Service provides free treatment and support to Islanders wanting to stop smoking. Support is offered across more than 20 pharmacies throughout the Island. The free service comprises an initial assessment, a quit day appointment and seven follow-up sessions for each individual.
Evidence shows that if smokers can manage without a single puff of a cigarette for 28 days, they are five times more likely to quit for good. Getting support increases an individual’s chances of successfully quitting.
The smoking profile shows that more than 2,000 smokers have successfully quit during the last six years.
Feel the benefits
Pharmacist Mel Boleat from Lloyds in St Helier said “Everyone knows that smoking is bad for their health and it’s well recognised that smoking accounts for nearly a fifth of all cancers. But what smokers may not realise is how quickly they’ll feel the benefits of stopping smoking.
“For example, people breathe more easily and cough less when they give up smoking because their lung capacity improves and that improvement starts within hours.
“When someone is in their 20s or 30s, the effect of smoking on their lung capacity may not be noticeable until they go for a run, but lung capacity naturally diminishes with age. So in later years, having maximum lung capacity can mean the difference between having an active, healthy old age and wheezing when going for a walk or when climbing stairs. It’s never too late to stop smoking and that’s what our service is here for – to help smokers to quit.”
A full list of the participating pharmacies is available at www.gov.je/smokefree or by asking a local pharmacist.
gov.je