NATIONAL NO-Smoking Day is next Wednesday and, with new rules regarding smoking in public coming into place this year, Gayle McBain looks at the latest developments. . .

SMOKERS in Bolton now have a new drug available to them in their fight to quit cigarettes.

Champix can be prescribed by the Bolton Stop Smoking Service and manager Adrian Butterworth said it promised hope to smokers who had tried to give up before and failed.

"It's exciting for us as it does have a good success rate," said Adrian.

Champix - which comes in tablet form - helps to reduce nicotine withdrawal symptoms and is proven to help 44.2 per cent of potential quitters and is 20 times more effective than going "cold turkey".

Up to now smokers in the town have been able to use the drug, Zyban - which is an anti-depressant - and nicotine replacement therapy.

"It won't be suitable for everyone but we are very pleased to have it available to us," said Adrian.

The drug arrives in the town and in some, but not all areas of the country, at a crucial time. All over Bolton people are preparing to stub it out for National No Smoking Day on Wednesday.

The first National No Smoking Day was on Ash Wednesday in 1984 and has been held on the second Wednesday in March every year since.

It is run by a charity and funded by a coalition of government and voluntary sector organisations with a keen interest in health.

This year - its 24th year - is, arguably, the most important as it comes just four months before a blanket ban on smoking will be imposed in public places in England and Wales.

So, anti-smoking campaigners believe it presents an ideal opportunity for smokers to give up and stay cigarette free for life.

On No Smoking Day last year 1.5 million smokers made an attempt to quit and millions more used the day to take a step towards stopping smoking.

The day is organised to help spur smokers into action and helps them learn where they can get help to stop. It does not try to force smokers to stop - it is for people who are already interested in doing something about their smoking.

Bolton Wanderers players have pledged their support for the day, as has The Royal Bolton Hospital.

In Bolton almost 30 per cent of people smoke, compared to a national average of 27 per cent and in some areas of the town the figure is as high as 65 per cent.

The Bolton News launched the Stub It Out campaign on learning these shocking figures, calling for smoking to be banned in all enclosed public places - a move set to be enforced on July 1.

Bolton has an impressive rate of smokers quitting, with more than half of those who decide to give up being successful, according to Bolton Stop Smoking Service.

Between April and December last year the service - available to people throughout the borough - helped 1,275 people give up smoking.

There are group sessions available and one to one sessions. Nicotine replacement therapy, including patches and gum, are available at prescription prices and now the service can offer access to Champix - although there are some restrictions to use, including an age barrier and it is not prescribed for pregnant women.

The service has organised various events on Wednesday, including a "drop-in" at The Crompton Place Centre, where there will be advisers who can help smokers who want to give up and provide information.

  • More information and help is available from Bolton Primary Care Trust on 462345. History of smoking
  • 6000 BC: Tobacco starts growing in the Americas.
  • 1493: AD Rodrigo de Jerez became the first European smoker in history. He was one of Christopher Columbus's fellow explorers and took his first puff of a cigar in Cuba.
  • 1541-1596: Sir Francis Drake may have been the man to introduce tobacco to England.
  • 1566-1625: King James 1 banned tobacco from London's alehouses. Later he had a change of heart and even reduced tobacco taxes.
  • 1858: Fears about the effects of smoking on health were first raised in The Lancet.
  • 1950: Evidence of a link between lung cancer and smoking published in the British Medical Journal.
  • 2003: New York bans smoking in all public places, followed by Ireland in 2004.
  • 2006: Scotland bans smoking in all enclosed public places including every pub, club and bar. MPs vote for a similar ban, including pubs and private clubs in England and Wales from 2007.