Wellington Community and Allied Health Centre health promotion officer Karen Lloyd said the health problems through smoking tobacco are well-known.

“The saying that every cigarette is doing you damage is true with information from the World Health Organisation showing that smoking tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world. Diseases and health problems such as lung cancer, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, emphysema and heart and blood vessel disease to name a few, have been directly linked to smoking tobacco.”

“In Australia, 19 019 people die each year from smoking. Whilst the rate of smoking has decreased over the past 30 years, an estimated 17.7 per cent of Australians aged over 15 years are still smoking,” she said.

Mrs Lloyd said that evidence shows that most smokers want to quit smoking with approximately 80 per cent having tried to quit once.

“Smoking is an addictive habit and quitting this habit for some can be one of the hardest things they can do. The ‘No More Smokes’ Quit Smoking program is designed to help smokers with the quitting process and covers areas such as coping with cravings and withdrawals, the myths and facts about nicotine replacement and recognising smoking triggers,” she said.

The six-week program starts on May 7 and will be held at the conference room at Wellington Hospital from 6 to 7.30pm. There is no cost to attend the ‘No More Smokes’ Quit Smoking program but participants will have to purchase your own nicotine replacement therapy.

To register for the program or to find out more information, please contact Karen Lloyd at the Wellington Community and Allied Health Centre on 6840 7210.