Stoptober is back, calling on smokers in England to join the 2.5 million others who have made a quit attempt with the campaign previously.

Over 5 million adults in England still smoke. Smoking causes 64,000 deaths a year, making it the biggest cause of preventable illness and death. Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health. That’s why this year’s Stoptober campaign is encouraging smokers to join the thousands of others who are committing to quitting for the month of October – quit smoking for 28 days and you’re five times more likely to quit for good.

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.

In Halton, we offer expert support from our Halton Stop Smoking Service. The team can offer 1-1 support via phone, email or face to face in venues across Runcorn and Widnes. Simply call us on 0300 029 0029 or email HIT@halton.gov.uk for more information or to speak to the team.

The team are now able to offer vapes as part of its service to help tobacco smokers quit. The vapes prescribed by the team are free, non-disposable, discreet, compliant with  Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and are easy to use.

Currently, vaping is the most effective quitting aid for tobacco smokers. The service provides vapes and also e-liquids, in a variety of flavours and differing in strength to suit tobacco smokers dependency, over a 12 week programme.

For more information about vaping to quit smoking visit:

ASH (Action on Smoking and Health): addressing common myths about vaping (ash.org.uk)

And Better Health: Vaping myths and the facts – Better Health – NHS (www.nhs.uk)

Stoptober also offers a range of free quitting tools from the NHS, including the NHS Quit Smoking app, daily email support, Facebook support group and information about quitting smoking with a vape.

Simply search ‘Stoptober’ for more information or visit the Better Health Quit Smoking Website. (Quit smoking – Better Health – NHS (www.nhs.uk))