Stoptober - will you be giving up smoking?

More than a third of people in the south-east who tried to give up smoking last October managed to do so.
NewsNews
News

A new study conducted on behalf of a UK-based medical website has revealed that overall two-thirds of smokers in Britain will attempt to stop smoking during Stoptober in a bid to give up the habit for good.

In order to discover how smokers are attempting to quit their cigarette addictions throughout ‘Stoptober’, a new piece of research conducted on behalf of an online pharmaceutical company has revealed how many smokers attempt to quit during the month of October and how many will triumph on their journey.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A survey conducted on behalf of www.MedExpress.co.uk polled a total of 2,839 UK-based adults, aged 18-65, for the purpose of the study. Each participant admitted they were a smoker and were spread evenly across each of the different regions within the UK.

Respondents were initially asked if they were going to try to give up smoking this year during ‘Stoptober’ with 65% saying they would. Individuals were then asked if they tried to do the same last year with 38 per cent in the south-east stating they did. Respondents were then asked to estimate how many cigarettes they smoked per day with the average answer being 23. They were then questioned why it was they were considering giving up for the month with the most common answers being for health reasons (52%) and because they were supporting a charitable cause (44%).

Participants were asked if they planned to use any products or services to help them quit smoking for the month. Almost two thirds (64%) stated they would be replacing cigarettes with e-cigarettes or vapes; 23% said they would resort to ‘stop smoking treatments’, 22% stated they would be using the NHS stop smoking services and 15% insisted they would be going cold turkey with no outside help whatsoever.

Michael Ross, spokesperson for MedExpress.co.uk commented: “Making the decision to give up cigarettes for Stoptober is the first step in a very difficult uphill battle that will completely test your willpower. Nicotine is a very addictive substance, so whilst it’s disappointing how many people fail to quit the habit for just one month, it’s completely understandable at the same time.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He continued: “E-cigarettes have become the go to product for those who want to quit but this can be addictive in itself and it’s far better to try and give up without turning your addiction onto something else. Research suggests that prescription stop smoking tablets can double and sometimes even triple your chances of successfully quitting compared to who try to quit on their own.”

Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.

Here are four ways you can be sure you’ll be amongst the first to know what’s going on.

1) Make our website your homepage

2) Like our Facebook page

3) Follow us on Twitter

4) Register with us by clicking on ‘sign in’ (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here.

And do share with your family and friends - so they don’t miss out!

Always the first with your local news.

Be part of it.