Date published: 2024-08-15 | Category: Adult Social Care and Health, Focusing on prevention, Improving people's lives, Public Health
Smokers in Bath and North East Somerset are being encouraged to swap cigarettes for vapes with a free vape kit offer from B&NES Stop Smoking Service.
The free Swap to Stop offer includes a refillable, rechargeable vape device along with four weeks supply of e-liquids, plus other essentials needed to start the switch from cigarettes to vaping.
New data from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) shows that more than half of ex-smokers who quit in the last five years say they used a vape in their last quit attempt, which amounts to 2.7 million ex-smokers.
Swap to Stop is a world-first national scheme in which almost 1 in 5 of all smokers in England will be provided with a vape starter kit to help them quit smoking as part of a series of measures to help the government meet its ambition of being smokefree by 2030 – reducing smoking rates to 5% or less.
Becky Reynolds, Director of Public Health for Bath & North East Somerset Council said: “There is strong evidence that vaping helps people to quit smoking and it’s less harmful than smoking. We are really pleased to be part of the national Swap to Stop programme in B&NES which means local smokers have an opportunity to try vaping at no cost to themselves. We know how difficult it is to quit smoking and most smokers will have tried many times. Vaping is currently the most popular and most effective way to quit so I encourage smokers in B&NES to take up this great offer.”
Brenda, a B&NES resident and ex-smoker shared her experience: “I attended the Specialist Stop Smoking clinic for support when I was given a code to get a free vape kit and the advisor also recommended some patches. I am smokefree and doing really well. The vape is helping a lot and I find the patches also help. I coughed at first when using the vape but it got better as I became used to it.”
If you are a smoker living in B&NES and aged 18+ and want to try a free vape kit, email hcrg.swaptostopbanes@nhs.net or call the Community Wellbeing Hub on freephone 0300 2470050
Smokers need to be over 18 and willing to share contact details with B&NES Stop Smoking Service to enable a minimum of one follow up contact within 28 days to feedback on their experience.
Read more about the free support on offer from the Bath & North East Somerset Community Health Services’ Stop Smoking Support Service at: https://bathneshealthandcare.nhs.uk/stop-smoking-support/
Although vaping is much safer than smoking, it is not risk free and is not recommended for anyone who has never smoked or young people under 18. Vaping exposes users to some toxins and the long-term risks of vaping are not yet clear.. There’s some evidence that in adolescence the brain is more sensitive to the effects of nicotine and the risk of developing dependence is higher.
FRANK provides information aimed at young people about vapes and nicotine.
ENDS