Smoking – A Big Turn Off

A recent survey, conducted by the Department of Health (DoH), shows that people who smoke could potentially be limiting their romantic chances of meeting someone, because the majority of the population find smoking off putting.


The DoH says to boost your chances of dating success this Valentine’s Day (February 14^th) quit smoking!

The poll surveyed 1,700 people, of which, half claimed that they would think twice about starting a serious relationship with a smoker.   Three-quarters of people aged between 18 and 24 said they would not kiss someone who had just smoked and agreed that smoking makes people less attractive.

The BBC news also pointed out that anecdotal reports from dating agencies appear to support the evidence reported by the DoH that people, in search of a partner, really did prefer non-smokers.

Popular relationship websites such as eHarmony.co.uk states that eighty-one percent of its members would not partner with a heavy smoker.  Similarly, at Match.com seventy-two percent of male members and seventy-three percent of female members, specified that they wanted a “non-smoking” partner.  At Mysinglefriend.com over half of its members (sixty-seven percent) said that smoking would put them off dating someone.

Sarah Beeny, founder of Mysinglefriend.com said; "It's particularly obvious that non-smokers find it harder to live with a smoker, so by giving up you not only increase your dating market, but protect the years you have together when you do settle down."

Statistics complied by Action on Smoking and Health (ASH.org.uk) shows that currently in the United Kingdom, more than ten million people smoke and it is estimated that half of these are likely to die from smoking-related diseases if they do not stop.  Every year, over 100,000 smokers die from smoking related diseases.

The DoH suggests that by quitting smoking, people could increase their life expectancy by 16 years.

We are all aware of the harmful affects of smoking to our health, and although the evidence suggests that in our quest for love, people do prefer partners who are non-smokers, the bottom line is that people need to make positive health changes for themselves. 

For advice on stopping smoking visit the NHS Choices website and see the benefits you can make to your help

World Cancer Day - 4 February 2011

Recommendations to help reduce the risk of cancer

This year World Cancer Day falls on Friday 4th February.  The purpose of the day is to raise awareness of the disease and to help people take the right steps to prevent them from getting Cancer. 

The most up to date statistics on Cancer rates and deaths are available from GLOBOCAN 2008  published in June 2010.  According to GLOBOCAN around 12.7 million people worldwide are diagnosed with cancer each year and 7.6 million people die from the disease.  It has been estimated that if people do not take the necessary precautions to limit the risk of getting cancer, 26 million people could be diagnosed with the disease by 2030.  

However, figures taken from the official World Cancer Day website also shows that 20 to 30 percent of all cancers can be prevented and one third can be cured by early diagnosis and treatment.  Thus the aim of the one day event is to help people understand that by changing ones lifestyle they can prevent cancer and live a healthier and longer life.

Below are some of the recommended steps to help prevent cancer:

1. Drink less Alcohol
It is widely acknowledged that alcohol abuse has a major impact on public health. It is ranked as the fifth leading risk factor for premature death and disability in the world. 
Although the link between alcohol and cancer is still not completely understood, there is an association found between alcohol and mouth, oesophageal, laryngeal, pharyngeal, breast and liver cancers.  Therefore the more alcohol one consumes the higher risk of getting cancer.  
By drinking moderately and keeping within the Governments recommended guidelines can be key in preventing cancer.

2. Maintain a Healthy Diet
Eating healthily and doing regular exercise can be crucial in preventing cancer.
A report published by The World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research (WCRF/AICR) called Food, Nutrition Physical Activity and the Prevention of Cancer: is the most extensive and comprehensive literature on diet, physical activity and cancer currently available. 

The report which was developed by 21 leading scientists from around the world, put forward 10 recommendations for the prevention of cancer.  Some of these measures included the following:
- To be lean, but not underweight
- Limit consumption of energy dense foods (processed food, high in added sugar, and high in fat)
- Eat more fruit and vegetables
- Limit consumption of red meats (pork, lamb, beef)

3. Do More Exercise
Statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO) reveal that globally there are approximately 1.6 billion adults who are overweight and around 400 million who are clinically obese . It is expected that by 2015 these figures will have risen to 2.3 billion and > 700 million respectively. 
Undeniably, obesity has many health implications such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and it may account for 20-30 percent of several cancers.  As such, experts state that by preventing excessive weight gain by being more active physically, can reduce the risk of many cancers. 
It is recommended that people partake in at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day.

4. Avoid Smoking
Statistics from the WHO shows that tobacco is the single biggest cause of cancer in the world.  It is responsible for killing 5 million a year - an average of one person every six seconds.  Smoking is responsible for a quarter of all cancer deaths, including, lung, mouth, throat cancers as well as, liver, pancreas, stomach, breast, bowel, kidney and bladder.
As such, studies continually demonstrate that by stopping tobacco use greatly reduces the risk of cancers and other short and long term health risks. 

Get Healthy!!

The Royal Society for Public health through Training Solutions run a Foundation Programme in Health Improvement.  This particular course offers candidates the opportunity of developing a firm foundation in health improvement while also making aware the health and lifestyle choices that affect personal and public health.  For more information click here or contact Nicolette Smith. 

Smoking - The Main Reason Why Men Die Sooner Than Women

In a report published by Tobacco Control "Contribution of smoking-related and alcohol related deaths to the gender gap in mortality: Evidence from 30 European countries" found that smoking continues to be the most important cause for gender differences in mortality across Europe.  

Since the 1990's emerging evidence has revealed that women outlive men in all countries of the world.  Historical records demonstrate that in England, Wales and some of the Nordic countries, the life expectancy of women has exceeded that of men since the mid to late 18th Century.  Currently in the UK women are estimated to live four years longer than men.  There has been a great deal of speculation as to why this appears to be the case.  Many expects claim that simple biology or the fact that women seek medical help more readily than men are the reasons for the disparity in life expectancy.

However, as the report discovers, smoking is the main cause followed by alcohol, which accounts for 20 percent of the difference. 

The report which studied the data extracted from the World Health Organization database, looked at thirty European countries.  It found that in all countries death from all causes were higher for men than for women.  However, the report also noted that there continues to be a considerable variation in the extent of gender difference in contemporary Europe.  The gender gap in all-cause death rates varied from 188 excess deaths per 100,000 in Iceland and the UK, to over 800 in Ukraine and Lithuania.    

Despite the variations, the researchers discovered that smoking-related deaths alone contributed to around 40 to 60 percent of the gender gap in all countries, excluding Denmark, France and Portugal where it is considerably lower, and Malta where it is higher at over 70 percent. 
The data demonstrated that in the UK, smoking-related diseases such as lung cancer and heart disease caused 60 percent of the excess male deaths. 

The researchers highlighted that, "It is no surprise that two of the most important health behaviours, smoking and hazardous drinking continue to account for substantial proportions of the gender gap in mortality because health behaviours have long been a powerful way of portraying gendered identities." 

Thus the report makes clear that there is an "ongoing need for public health measures to reduce health damaging behaviours". 

Natasha Stewart, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said: "It is never too late to give up smoking so it's important we invest in support services to help people quit the habit as well as ensuring our young people don't start smoking in the first place.”

Men's Health Week 13 - 19 June
-To Raise awareness of preventable health problems among men and boys -

In light of Men's Health Week this year, the RSPH will be hosting a one day Men's Health course on May 13th.  The purpose of the event is to facilitate men’s access to information, empower them to be more aware and access health leisure services, in order to improve key lifestyle behaviours.
For further information or to book onto the course please contact Nicolette Smith.

Quitting Smoking Can Make You Feel Happier

The notion that smoking helps relieves emotions such as anxiety and depression is a myth, say researchers at Brown University.  People are known to smoke when they are feeling stressed in an attempt to relieve tension.  However a study published in the Nicotine & Tobacco Research, indicates that people who are in the process of giving up smoking have never felt happier!

Christopher Kahler, corresponding author of "Time-Varying Smoking Abstinence Predicts Lower Depressive Symptoms Following Smoking Cessation Treatment" says smokers thinking of quitting should be encouraged by the double benefit - both physical and mental.  Not only will giving up smoking improve your physical health but evidence suggests that your mental health is also likely to improve.  Therefore, stopping smoking is far from a psychological nightmare done to live longer, Kahler added.

Kahler noted that "The assumption has often been that people might smoke because it has anti-depressant properties and that if they quit it might unmask a depressive episode.  What's surprising is that at the time when you measure smokers' mood, even if they've only succeeded for a little while, they are already reporting less symptoms of depression."

Scientists at the Peninsula Medical School in the UK, in a study called the English Longitudinal Study of Aging, assessed the wellbeing of nearly 10,000 people over the age of 50.  It was found that smokers in that group reported lower average levels of pleasure and less satisfaction with their lives than the non smokers.   The lead researcher on the team, Iain Lang, reported that smokers feel pleasure when they initially light up.  But that's because they're feeding their addiction.  Overall they're not any happier than non smokers.  In fact, they're less so.

For more information on ways to quit smoking click here.