Help Us Achieve A Smoke Free Scotland For Our Children - British Medical Association

Main Category: Smoking / Quit Smoking
Article Date: 11 Mar 2009 - 5:00 PDT

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BMA Scotland is marking National No Smoking Day (11 March) by calling on smokers to quit the habit and help to ensure a smoke-free Scotland for future generations. The BMA believes that the UK could be tobacco free by 2035, and by making the decision to stop today, smokers could be helping to achieve this target.

Smoking kills over 13,000 people every year in Scotland, which equates to almost a quarter of all deaths, and the NHS has to allocate vast resources to treating smoking related illness.

Dr Peter Terry, Chairman of the BMA in Scotland said:

"Smoking causes lung cancer, heart disease and respiratory problems. It ages skin, makes your breath smell and stains fingers yellow. Every day doctors witness the death and despair caused by smoking. Tobacco is highly addictive and people need support to give up. Most people who smoke tell us they wish they had never started.

"It is essential we break the tobacco trap. Young smokers will become tomorrow's parents who smoke and they will continue the cycle of smoking-related ill-health and premature death. One of the best ways to prevent children starting to smoke is for their parents quit. By stopping today, smokers are taking the first step to a tobacco free future for their children."

The Scottish Parliament is currently considering legislation (the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Bill), which aims to crack down on the promotion of tobacco products to young people.

The BMA report Forever cool: the influence of smoking on young people can be accessed online at: here.

The BMA report Breaking the cycle of children's exposure to tobacco smoke can be accessed here.

BMA Scotland