Smoking cessation: Have a quick word and save a life

Smoking is the single biggest cause of preventable mortality in the UK, accounting for approximately 100,000 premature deaths a year.¹ About half of smokers die prematurely because of their smoking, and do so on average 20 years earlier than non-smokers.² Those smokers who do not die early because of their smoking do not 'get away with it': the morbidity associated with smoking is considerable (Box 1). Significantly, smokers tend to experience diseases of old age 12 years earlier than non-smokers.³

Living well for longer: a call to action to reduce avoidable premature mortality⁴ reports that the general health of the population in England and Wales has improved in recent years, and as a result we are living longer than ever before.⁵ The three biggest causes of death attributable to smoking are cancers, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and cardiovascular disease (CVD).