Local health charity urges people not to take up vaping other than in a short-term attempt to quit smoking

Smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable illness and premature death in Northern Ireland, robbing 10-15 years of healthy life according to the charity.

Fidelma Carter, Head of Public Health at NICHS, said: “Smoking kills around 2,300 people each year in Northern Ireland which is an alarming statistic. We are concerned at the fact around 17% of the population in NI smoke.

“We would encourage people to try and start their journey towards quitting smoking and better health this No Smoking Month. The fact smoking is the biggest cause of preventable illness and premature death will hopefully help persuade many people to kick this habit for good.”

NICHS pointed out there are over 5,000 chemicals in a cigarette.

"These chemicals increase your risk of chest, heart and stroke conditions as well as other illnesses,” said Fidelma. "Smokers are almost twice as likely to have a heart attack compared with people who have never smoked. Furthermore, every cigarette shortens your life by five minutes. When you think about the impact of smoking in terms like this it is truly shocking.”

She added: “We understand it can be extremely difficult to give up smoking but there are wide-ranging free stop smoking support services out there to help. You are four times more likely to quit successfully if you get professional help and nicotine replacements, so we would encourage people to contact their community pharmacy or GP to find out more about the help available. The website www.stopsmokingni.info also has further information on the support available.”

NICHS said it recommends limiting e-cigarettes or vape use to 12 weeks.

“The long-term health implications and risks of vaping remain unclear, in the same way they once were for tobacco use in the past. Therefore, if you opt for vaping to help you quit smoking, it's best to use this for a short duration. Additionally, seek assistance from your local pharmacist or a specialised stop smoking service to kick the smoking habit and avoid developing a new long-term vaping habit which can be costly too.’’

She added: “It’s important to remember that it’s never too late to give up smoking and doing so is the biggest lifestyle change you can make to help reduce your risk of becoming seriously ill. The risk of serious disease starts reducing as soon as you stop smoking- breathing becomes easier and improves as lung function increases, and within one year of quitting a person’s risk of a heart attack is halved.”

For more information on stopping smoking visit nichs.org.uk/information/risk-factors/smoking For resources and information about vaping, visit nichs.org.uk/vaping