May 31 is World No Tobacco Day. The focus this year is on tobacco and lung health, and increasing awareness of the negative affects tobacco has, including an increased risk for cancer and chronic lung disease. Most people know smoking is bad for you, but just how bad is it? Tobacco use is the single greatest avoidable risk factor for death due to lung cancer, and roughly 80% of lung cancers could be prevented if smoking was eliminated. One hundred Canadians die of a smoking-related illness every day, but despite these warnings, about 5 million Canadians—that’s 16% of us—regularly light up.
There are so many reasons to live smoke free – most of them related to your health, quality of life. And life span. But for many people the physical addiction to nicotine is incredibly difficult to battle. Did you know that some of the benefits of not smoking occur within days of quitting? It is never too late to reap the benefits, and there are many strategies you can use to help you quit smoking for good.
Read our round-up of resources to learn more about the risks involved with tobacco use and ways to stop smoking.
