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Many of the diseases caused by smoking - heart disease, lung cancer -
are seen as 'male' diseases. But as the number of women smoking increases -
one in four women now smokes - so does the number dying from such
preventable illnesses.
Risks for women
Smoking is the single largest cause of preventable cancer deaths in the UK.
Each year it causes 32,000 deaths from lung cancer and 11,000 deaths
from other cancers.
The more you smoke, the greater your risk. However, just one or two cigarettes
a day are more than enough to cause lung cancer. Chronic lung disease
is also common among older smokers, destroying busy and active lives.
Smoking also increases your risk of heart disease.
And if you smoke and take the contraceptive pill, your risk of heart disease
is 30 times that of a non-smoker.
Smoking affects your skin too. It ages more quickly in smokers,
with the early appearance of wrinkles and thinning of the skin.
Benefits of quitting
The good news is, many of the benefits of quitting smoking are immediate.
Food will taste better and your breathing will become easier.
Even if you've smoked for 30 years, your risk of heart disease will halve within
a year of stopping.
There are financial benefits of kicking the weed, too.
Assuming a packet of 20 cigarettes costs around ￡5 and that you smoke
a packet a day, a year's supply of cigarettes costs you around ￡1,825.
In a lifetime of smoking (40 years, if you're lucky enough to live that long)
means sending ￡73,000 up in smoke.
How to quit
1. Make a plan - decide your quit date, detail how you'll react to temptations,
even make a list of the pros and cons of smoking to keep on track.
2. Get motivated - imagine the Mediterranean beach you could be basking on
with all the money saved from kicking the habit, or set your own goal or treat.
3. Get support - from your GP and most importantly from your family and friends
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