Green spaces help smokers kick the habit, study finds

SMOKERS are more likely to give up their habit if they live near green spaces, research has suggested.

Scientists also found that those residing in leafy neighbourhoods were less likely to smoke.

The research, published in the journal Social Science & Medicine, was based on data from more than 8,000 adults from the Health Survey for England.

Leanne Martin, the study’s lead author from the University of Plymouth, said: “This study is the first to investigate the association between neighbourhood green space and smoking behaviours in England.

“Its findings support the need to protect and invest in natural resources, in both urban and more rural communities, in order to maximise the public health benefits they may afford.

“If our findings are substantiated by further work, nature-based interventions could be prescribed to assist individuals attempting to give up smoking.”

Previous studies by the same team showed that access to green spaces was associated with reduced cravings for alcohol and unhealthy foods as well as better physical and mental wellbeing.

Among the survey’s participants, less than one fifth (19 per cent) described themselves as current smokers while almost half (45 per cent) said they had regularly smoked at some point during their lives.

Analysis showed that people living in areas with a high proportion of green spaces were 20 per cent less likely to be smokers than those in less green areas.

And among those who had smoked at some point, people living in greener neighbourhoods were up to 12 per cent more likely to have quit.

The authors suggested that improving access to green spaces could be factored into the public health strategy for reducing smoking prevalence.

Mathew White, the study’s co-author and an honorary associate professor at the University of Exeter, said: “This study emphasises the need to preserve existing green spaces and expand the development of new ones.”