Kick smoking for good with ‘We Can Quit’

YOU can quit smoking and kick the habit for good.

That’s the message from the Irish Cancer Society, which has called on female smokers to sign up for its next ‘ We Can Quit’ smoking-cessation course in Mallow later this month.

An initiative of the society, in partnership locally with the Le Chéile Family Resource Centre and the Mallow Community Health Project, it will run for over 12 weeks at the centre

The program is free of charge and will offer the opportunity for women over the age of 18 to join forces and support each other in their efforts to give up smoking.

Participants on the programme will receive one-to-one support during the group’s sessions in addition to being offered 12 weeks of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT).

Eimear Cotter, a community cancer prevention officer with the Irish Cancer Society, said research has shown that smokers who use a combination of group support and two NRT products for a 12-week period are four times more likely to quit and stay smoke-free for good.

“Giving up smoking is extremely difficult and can prove to be a huge challenge for people. However, over the last three years more than 150 woman have completed the program,” said Eimear.

“When we examined the programme results, we also found that it has a very positive quit rate; around half of all participants had quit smoking after taking part in the course”, she added.

Martina Daly, a community health worker at Le Chéile, said the ‘We Can Quit’ program has proven to be hugely successful when run in Mallow on previous occasions.

“We want women to know that with the program they are not alone when they embark on their quitting journey,” she said.

“You will join a group of women who have shared a goal together; with our support, you can quit smoking for good.

“It is so fantastic to have witnessed the joy and confidence of the women who have quit with the help of this programme,” she added.

For further details on ‘ We Can Quit’ and to sign up for the programme – which will commence in Mallow on Wednesday, February 27 – contact Eimear Cotter on (021) 4840597 or ecotter@irishcancer.ie or register online at www.cancer.ie/we-can-quit.