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Choose 2B Free of Smoking

If you could wave a magic wand, would you want to stop smoking?

Well, it's not a magic wand, but it's the next best thing.

"As last we have a research-based approach to help keep you more comfortable while you stop smoking", says Dr Shelley Lichter, a ProCare GP and clinical leader of ProCare's Choose 2B Free (from smoking) programme.

"Our message to smokers is that stopping smoking is the most important thing you can do for your health and that the time to stop smoking is now," says Dr Lichter. "When you choose to do this, we are heere to help you. If you have tried before, we have even more information for you to learn from. Being smoke-free is a challenge. That;s where your ProCare doctors and nurses can help."

Dr Lichter says the Choose 2B Free programme is especially designed for people who are:

  • Over the age of 18
  • Committed enough to do follow-up sessions with their doctor or practice nurse
  • Interested in discussing whether medication will help their individual situation.

"International research shows using regular counselling and medication will give you three times the chance of staying smoke free," says Dr Lichter.

If you take part in the programme, your ProCare GP team will be available to five you the best chance of staying smoke free. They can provide regular support for the first six weeks to discuss your progress and any problems or questions you have. After that, there can be follow up consultations until you've been smoke free for a year.

Your doctor can also help you choose the most helpful medication for your individual situation. This medication can help to reduce the urges to smoke and control recovery (withdrawal) symptoms. It makes you much more likely to stay smoke free.

"Once the commitment is made, you're ready to start," says Dr Lichter. "Your GP team will give you your 'Choose 2B Free' booklet. it is a quick, easy guide that helps take you through many of the things you will learn.

"There is advice on what you do before you stop, and how to identify support people amongst your friends and family who can help you stay smoke free. You will learn hos to do new things at times you used to smoke. You will learn how to prepare for difficult situations like alcohol, other smokers, weight control, or feeling down. You will learn about the benefits of being smoke free. If you can;t find solutions for your own challenges, you can shoose from things that helped other people become non-smokers."

Around 350 ProCare doctors and practice nurses have booked into new smoke-free courses to learn the latest international research about how to improve smokers' chances of staying smoke-free, and now they're ready to share these proven methods. Ask your ProCare doctor or nurse about becomeing smoke-free.

MOST PEOPLE KNOW THE BAD NEWS THAT GOES WITH SMOKING:

  • shortness of breath
  • heart attacks
  • strokes
  • impotence
  • infertility
  • harm to pregnancy
  • harm to others
  • cancer

YOU MAY EVEN KNOW THAT IF YOU SMOKE WITHIN YOUR HOUSE OR CAR:

  • your partner is more likely to have lung cancer or heart disease
  • your children are more likely to suffer asthma, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, middle ear disease, or becoming smokers themselves.

THE GOOD NEWS IS EVEN MORE IMPORTANT:

It is helpful to stop smoking at any age. the earlier you stop, the more you have to gain. For instance:

  • Within one day of stopping, the chance of a heart attack decreases
  • Within two days of stopping, smell and taste are improved
  • Within three months of stopping, the blood flow around your body improves and your lung function improves 30%
  • Within a year of stopping, you have halved your extra heart disease risk
  • Within five years of stopping, your risk of a major heart attack is no more than someone who has never smoked. In people who have heart disease, becoming smoke free halves the risk of another attack
  • Within 10-15 years of stopping, your risk of dying is the same as someone who has never smoked
  • You will have the freedom to choose what you do and when
  • If you now smoke a pack a day, you will sale $58,400 over 20 years
  • You are more likely to live long enough to be there for your family/whanau.

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