Smokers will be handed nicotine patches for free by the National Health System (NHS), as a part of a ?250 million Government program to help people stop smoking.
These patches give smokers a step-by step release of nicotine through the skin allowing to get their fix without the use of cancer-causing substances contained in tobacco products. As soon as people become less addicted to tobacco products, they use patches less frequently until they do not need to wear them at all.
The Department of Health hasn’t announced how many patches will be provided in Quit Kit. They will be attached to the “Quit Kits” recently given to smokers who are trying to quit through the NHS Stop Smoking Campaign.
Currently this pack contains only a good luck postcard and an elastic band-type toy to help smokers keep their hands occupied and a card with the number of stop smoking helpline.
The patches that cost approximately ?10 and ?14 for a week, demonstrated that they double smokers’ chances to kick this harmful habit.
There are cases when those people who are trying to quit suffer abstinence syndrome from the substance including depression and sometimes people even become suicidal.
Surgeon General, Andrew Lansley wants to increase significantly the number of smokers who realized to stop smoking.
The last data demonstrate that the quantitative ratio of those who are trying to quit has almost halved within the last three years.
At present only 17% of smokers are trying to kick the habit from 32% in 2007. But over the same period the sum of money allocated for the NHS Stop Smoking campaign has increased from ?51 million.
Surveys show that more than a fifth of adults in Britain smoke, two thirds of whom would like to kick the habit.
Average-expectancy life of a smoker is decreased by approximately ten years and a half of them will die of various smoking related diseases and lung cancer.
Government officials are also planning to start a plan to give out free gym vouchers within the next few days.
More than five million voucher chequebooks will probably be available within the coming weeks from locations as ASDA supermarkets, surgeries and schools.
Each chequebook is planned to contain 20 vouchers, which will give to some families discounted sessions at gym or pool.
Currently is not clear if they will be given on a first-come first-served basis or will only be handed to certain groups as for instance to obese people.
The project that will constitute a part of the Change 4 Life program was divulged for the first time in November as part of the Government’s public health white paper.
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