Health Exchange

Do you want to stop smoking? Do you live in Birmingham?

Wednesday 9^th March 2011 is national stop smoking day and to celebrate peoples efforts to quit smoking we are promoting ways to stop smoking to help and support you.

A few facts about smoking currently in UK:

• Around 10 million people smoke with two thirds of smokers starting before the age of 18.
• Approximately 1 in 4 of all smoking-related deaths in the UK is from cardiovascular disease.
• Tobacco smoke contains over 4000 chemicals in the form of particles and gases.
• It is estimated that smoking causes over 100,000 premature deaths in the UK every year, of which about a quarter are from lung cancer and around one fifth are from chronic obstructive lung disease. Globally COPD is the fourth most common cause of death and is caused primarily by smoking.
• Approximately a third of all cancer deaths are attributable to smoking.
• Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body, causing many diseases. Smokers face a higher risk than non-smokers for a wide variety of illnesses, many of which may be fatal, however many also cause years of debilitating illness.

Still unsure as to whether quiting smoking is for you?

Here are a few reasons why you should and how you can achieve this.

• Within 8 hours of stopping the Nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in blood reduce by half, oxygen levels return to normal. Circulation improves.
• In 48 hours the ability to taste and smell improves.
• In 1 month your appearance improves – skin loses its greyish pallor and becomes less wrinkled.
• In 1 year your risk of a heart attack reduces by half compared to that of a smoker.
• In 10 years the risk of lung cancer falls to about half that of a smoker.

Tips to help you quit:

• Involve friends and family for support
• Speak to Health Exchange about ways that you can access Nicotine Replacement Therapy and a Health Trainer who can support you through these first difficult few weeks and beyond.
• Write a list of reasons why it would be good for you to quit
• Think of the money you’ll save – the average price of a pack of 20 cigarettes is £6.28
• Find an activity that keeps your hands busy…this will stop you reaching for a cigarette
• Save your money that you would normally spend on cigarettes and treat yourself!
• And finally you don’t have to go through this alone call Health Exchange on 0800 158 35 35 and we’ll help you every step of the way

Facts and figures sourced from ASH.org.uk and smokefree.co.uk

This week saw the Government announce a new intitiative for Mental Health; featuring a focus on prevention as opposed to cure, talking therapies and safe-guarding children.

Here at Health Exchange, we are pleased to see the Government taking active measures to improving services that affect so many individuals (1 in 4) knowing the knock on effect it can have on other areas of their life such as health, work and relationships.

In this coming year, we are committed to improving our approach to mental health by up scaling how to build resilience and promote mental health self-help caused by emotional distress. We will support healthy lifestyle in order to create a positive impact on community mental health and wellbeing. The overriding message will be: be well physically, be well emotionally, be well mentally.

We know each of us can take steps to protecting and improving our mental wellbeing, but sometimes we need a little help. That’s why we have outlined 3 of our services that could improve your Mental Wellbeing. Best of all: Their all FREE.

Walks – Regular physical activity improves mood, helps relieve depression and increases feelings of well-being, notes natural england. Our Health Walks provide light exercise in a safe and supervised route. Better still, all our health walks are in groups to help you natter, make new friends and prevent feelings of loneliness and isolation.

Health Trainer- Our Health Trainers can motivate you to achieve health goals you previously thought out of reach. By providing a realistic and personalised plan you are able to improve your health and gain a sense of control and confidence to achieve your goals, both short term and in the future.

Support plus – Our Support Plus buddies help you manage wider social determinants of health like housing benefits and access to services. By empowering you with specific life skills you are better equipped to combat these problem if they arise again.

Mental Health is such a large and complex area. Traditionally perceived as the hidden disease it is often difficult to spot and treat. We hope, together, we can go some way to making little changes that help improve the bigger picture.