Stoptober is back – take this opportunity to quit smoking!

NHS South Yorkshire is encouraging people to join the tens of thousands of people quitting smoking for this year’s Stoptober.

The first of October marked the start of Stoptober, an annual national campaign to help smokers kick the habit.  The campaign runs throughout the month, because people are five times more likely to quit for good if they can make it to at least 28 days smoke free.

This year's Stoptober is as important as ever, with quitting remaining one of the best things a smoker can do for their health. When you stop smoking good things start to happen - quitting will allow you to start moving better, breathe more easily and give you more money to spend.

Dr David Crichton, Chief Medical Officer from NHS South Yorkshire said: “There are so many benefits to not smoking; it’s one of the most important things you can do to improve your health and wellbeing, and not just for you, but for your family as well".

“Stoptober provides an opportunity to highlight the wide range of support, to help quit smoking. People create their own quit plan, often with like-minded people who plan to quit and need a bit of support and inspiration”.

“So this October, join the thousands of smokers committing to quitting. It's much easier to stop smoking when you get the right support and there are lots of options to choose from”.

The benefits of stopping smoking will soon be seen and after just a few hours in most cases people will start to breathe more easily, feel better and be protecting those around them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke.

Stoptober offers a range of free quitting tools including the NHS Quit Smoking app, Facebook messenger bot, Stoptober Facebook online communities, daily emails and text messages, and an online Personal Quit Plan tool. Search: ‘Stoptober’ online for more information.

There are also local stop smoking services which are free, friendly and can massively boost your chances of quitting for good.

These services are staffed by expert advisers who provide a range of proven methods to help you quit.  They'll give you accurate information and advice, as well as professional support, during the first few months of stop smoking. 

They also make it easy and affordable for you to get stop smoking treatments, such as nicotine replacement therapy.

To find your local stop smoking service, just visit the Better Health website and enter your postcode.