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The age at which people can buy tobacco in England should rise by one each year until it becomes a "smoke-free" society, a government-commissioned review recommended on Thursday (June 9). The minimum age today is 18. But the review by Javed Khan, former head of children's charity Barnardo's, advised raising it annually until eventually no one can buy tobacco products. His review recommends 15 interventions to help the government meet its national target to be smoke-free by 2030, including the promotion of vaping to help smokers quit. "Without immediate and sustained action, England will miss the smoke-free target by many years and most likely decades," said Khan. "A smoke-free society should be a social norm -- but to achieve this, we must do more to stop people taking up smoking, help those who already smoke and support those who are disproportionately impacted by smoking."

Smoking is the most significant cause of preventable deaths in England, and the health risks associated with smoking well documented. This not only puts a heavy burden on the healthcare system but also has a substantial social impact. Its link to health inequalities is more evident because it is more prevalent amongst the most vulnerable in our society, with low educational attainment and poor socioeconomic status. Even as smoking rates progressively reduced, these patients remained the most difficultto reach with cessation services. Recent years have also seen many local authorities stop providing locally commissionedNHS stop smoking service, citing funding constraints. The postpandemic financial reckoning may yet see more strain on what is left in the coffers. The Healthy Living pharmacy ethos community pharmacy teams, proactively supporting patients to quit and advising on the best evidence-shaped approach, deliver successful outcomes.

Smoking is more harmful than previously thought. New research from University College London (UCL) reveals that every cigarette smoked shortens a smoker's life by an average of 20 minutes. Published today (30 December), the study estimates that a pack of 20 cigarettes results in nearly 7 hours of life lost. The research, commissioned by the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), also highlights the positive impacts of quitting smoking. Smokers who stop on New Year's Day could save a whole day of their life by 8 January, assuming they smoked 10 cigarettes daily. By 20 February, this figure increases to a week, and by the end of the year, they could avoid losing up to 50 days of life. Public health minister Andrew Gwynne has urged smokers to make a New Year's resolution to quit, describing smoking as "an expensive and deadly habit." "The new year offers a perfect chance for smokers to make a new resolution and take that step."

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has introduced a new 'swap to stop' scheme to encourage one million smokers to swap cigarettes for vapes in England. As part of the world-first national scheme, almost 1 in 5 of all smokers in England will be provided with a vape starter kit alongside behavioural support to help them quit the habit as part of a series of new measures to help the government meet its ambition of being smokefree by 2030 - reducing smoking rates to 5% or less. Local authorities will also be invited to take part in the scheme later this year and each will design a scheme which suits its needs, including deciding which populations to prioritise. Health Minister Neil O'Brien announced on Tuesday (11 April) that pregnant women will be offered financial incentives to help them stop smoking. This will involve offering vouchers, alongside behavioural support, to all pregnant women who smoke by the end of next year. The government will also consult on introducing mandatory cigarette pack inserts with positive messages and information to help people to quit smoking. It has also announced a formation of new 'illicit vapes enforcement squad' to regulate and tackle the sales of illegal vapes to under 18s.

Ready to quit smoking and end nicotine use? Here are some facts about smoking and why it pays to quit this habit naturally and once in for all. Read to know the benefits of quitting smoking and how to quit now.

Ready to quit smoking and end nicotine use? Here are some facts about smoking and why it pays to quit this habit naturally and once in for all. Read to know the benefits of quitting smoking and how to quit now.

Everybody is well aware of the fact that smoking causes lung cancer but very few people are aware of the fact that puffing on cigarettes can actually cause macular degeneration, which is the leading cause of blindness. Thus, this is yet another reason to stop smoking. Smoking and Macular Degeneration: Cigarette contains tobacco, which when burnt or ignited gives out four thousand types of fatal substances including irritants, carcinogens and inflammatory agents. These chemicals have the tendency to get into the bloodstream of the person smoking the cigarettes. They then navigate their way inside the human body to the macula, which is situated at the back of the eye and damage it, thus resulting in macular degeneration.

Online vape store GoSmokeFree analysed data from NHS Stop Smoking Service in England from April to September 2023 to determine the number of individuals in each of the nine UK regions who reported successfully quitting smoking after setting a quit date. The findings showed that the South East has the highest number of successful quitters, with 1,226 smokers per 100,000 reporting to have given it up. The Isle of Wight is the most successful area to quit smoking in the South East with 3,124 people quitting per 100,000 smokers. Of the 4,294 individuals who set a quit date in this region, 803 admitted to not being able to achieve their target. A spokesperson from the online retailer noted that overcoming nicotine withdrawals and mental challenges can be exceptionally difficult when attempting to quit smoking.

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Generic pharmaceutical company Brown & Burk has announced that it is "the first and the only company" to launch the new anti-smoking pill 'Varenicline' in the UK. Available through NHS stop smoking services, the daily pill has been shown to be as effective as vapes and more successful than nicotine replacement gum or patches in helping smokers quit. When combined with behavioural support, such as counselling, Varenicline was found to help one in four smokers quit for at least six months. The company told Pharmacy Business that its Varenicline 1mg and 0.5mg tablets are being distributed by Teva UK, branded with Brown & Burk's livery. Health secretary Wes Streeting recently highlighted the potential benefits of the pill, stating that its rollout could "save the NHS millions of pounds, save appointments to help other patients be seen faster, and save lives." A study by University College London suggested that Varenicline use could help over 85,000 people try to quit smoking each year, potentially preventing up to 9,500 smoking-related deaths over the next five years.

how to quit smoking. Let,s take a step by step approach. First and most important,the individual himself or herself should first decide to STOP SMOKING.I believe applying restriction on an individual does'nt help.One should decide individually,that this

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At the Conservative Party Conference, PM Rishi Sunak pledged to raise the legal age every year to buy from those who were born in 2009. The proposed changes also encompass heated tobacco products, recognized as smoke-free alternatives that heat, not burn, tobacco to produce a distinct nicotine-containing aerosol compared to traditional cigarette smoke. The following move in a bid to "try and stop teenagers taking up cigarettes in the first place", and bring in restrictions to stop young people from vaping. PM Rishi Sunak spoke at the conference, "Last week I promised to create the first smoke-free generation and I am wasting no time to deliver on that promise.

The new Smoking Cessation Service (SCS) will commence on March 10, 2022, allowing community pharmacy contractors to register to provide the service on the NHS Business Services Authority's (NHSBSA) Manage Your Service (MYS) portal from March 1, 2022. This is the second of the two new Advanced services to be introduced this financial year, after the Hypertension case-finding service, which were agreed outcomes from negotiations for Year 3 of the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework. Since the service is an Advanced service, contractors are free to decide if they wish to provide it, as most would be busy completing work for the Pharmacy Quality Scheme 2021/22 alongside winter-related workload, the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee said. Therefore, those who decide to start this service should consider the likelihood of receiving sufficient referrals to make provision of the service worthwhile, the PSNC said.

A new study by the University of East Anglia has found that giving out 'vape starter kit vouchers' on the NHS could help even hardened smokers quit. In the recent study, researchers worked with GPs and the 'NHS stop smoking service', commissioned locally by Public Health at Norfolk County Council, to set up a pilot 'vape shop voucher' scheme (worth £25 each) to help patients who had tried but failed to stub it out in the past. An evaluation of the scheme, funded by Norfolk County Council, showed it was a big success - with 42 per cent of the entrenched smokers who were referred to it and redeemed their vape voucher having quit within a month. After the success of the pilot, the scheme has been rolled out across Norfolk and the research team hope it could be rolled out nationally to help more smokers quit. Lead researcher and addiction expert Prof Caitlin Notley, from the UEA's Norwich Medical School, said: "Research shows that vaping is an effective way of quitting smoking, compared to nicotine replacement therapies like patches and gum. E-cigarettes or vapes are now the most popular way of stopping smoking.

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The UK government's proposal to introduce a tobacco and vapes bill received support from the public to create the first 'smokefree generation'. The historic law to ban the sale of tobacco products to children aged 14 and younger from legally being sold cigarettes in England. King Charles delivered his first speech as monarch at the state opening of Parliament on Tuesday, 7 November. The monarch announced the introduction of the "tobacco and vapes bill" in his speech, and it read: "My Government will introduce legislation to create a smoke-free generation by restricting the sale of tobacco so that children currently aged 14 or younger can never be sold cigarettes, and restricting the sale and marketing of e-cigarettes to children."

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Community pharmacies are bracing themselves to withdraw services from patients after an industry ballot supported plans for major action unless the government provided a significant increase in funding for the sector. The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) on Tuesday (12) announced the results of an unprecedented collective action ballot in which nearly all pharmacy owners, who participated in the ballot, voted to limit their services, insisting that a lack of additional funding is jeopardising patients health and safety. Over 63 per cent of NPA members in England, Wales and Northern Ireland took part in the ballot- representing 3,049 independent community pharmacies in England alone, or 3,399 with Wales and Northern Ireland included. Nearly 98 per cent of pharmacy owners in England voted to reduce their opening hours to the minimum required by their contract. This could result in fewer pharmacies remaining open during evenings and weekends. More than 93 per cent voted to stop offering "unfunded" free home deliveries of medicines, and over 96 per cent voted to withdraw from locally commissioned services, including certain addiction support, emergency contraception, and stop smoking services.

Women who are trying to conceive should stop vaping as it may affect fertility, a study by the women's health firm Hertility has suggested. Analysis of blood samples from more than 8000 women revealed that vapers and smokers have lower levels of anti-mullerian hormone (AMH), which indicates how many eggs women have left in their ovaries. Across all age groups, AMH levels were found to be lower in people who vaped than non-vapers, suggesting that vaping could accelerate age-related decline in egg reserve. Concerningly, the report revealed that one in five British women vape while trying to get pregnant, with a significant portion also engaging in other lifestyle "vices" such as alcohol, drugs and smoking.

A new bill was introduced to Parliament on Wednesday (20 March) to prohibit the sale of tobacco to children under the age of 15, delivering on the Prime Minister's commitment to create a smokefree generation. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill aims to protect future generations from the harmful impacts of smoking, thereby saving thousands of lives and billions of pounds for the NHS. The bill will also introduce new powers to restrict vape flavours and packaging deliberately targeted towards children, as well as allow the government to change how they are displayed in shops, moving them out of sight of children and away from products that appeal to them, like sweets. Additionally, enforcement officers' powers will be strengthened with 'on the spot fines' of £100 to ensure compliance with the new laws. This complements the existing maximum fine of £2,500 that local authorities can already impose. It will also become illegal to provide free samples of vapes to children under the age of 18.