help & advice

I want to quit smoking...

This is the first, and most crucial, step – give yourself a big green tick! Being genuinely committed to giving up is probably the most important part of trying to go smoke free. Here's some information about why you should ditch the fags:

The benefits

  • You will regain taste and smell within a few days.
  • Your breathing will return to being more regular and natural.
  • You will regain a steadier rhythm of life - sleep more soundly and therefore feel more relaxed.
  • You will regain peace of mind and your taste for life - the stress, anxiety and irritability that are provoked by giving up cigarettes will rapidly fade away (therapeutic methods can help), and the related advantages will quickly take the upper hand.
  • You will spend less money - and could even save some. "Putting aside" the money that was initially spent on tobacco to save up for something special is great motivation.
  • Your skin and hair will regain a healthier appearance. As will your fingers, teeth and breath, which no longer show the effects of your smoking habit.
  • You will regain your place in society: the increasing predominance of smoke-free public spaces allows you to live a healthy and normal life avoiding permanent tobacco temptation.

No matter who you are or how many cigarettes you smoke, it's always the right time to quit smoking, even if you have to try several times.

For more information about how to quit visit the EU's Help website


I don't want to start smoking...

If you ever get the urge to start smoking or if you’re struggling under the weight of social pressure, just keep this lot in mind:

Tobacco kills!

Each year tobacco is responsible for thousands of deaths. One out of ten smokers sees their life expectancy lowered by 20 years. Tobacco causes many diseases - including cancer.

Tobacco is expensive!

Whether bought in packs or hand-rolled, cigarettes are expensive and can quickly put young people or even whole families into debt. Diseases caused by tobacco lead to huge health expenditures for taxpayers and Government health systems.

Tobacco distorts!

It reduces the senses of taste and smell.

Tobacco damages the body inside as well as outside!

Tobacco can lead to respiratory failure and can harm your physical capacities, causing impotence for men, and ectopic pregnancy and spontaneous abortions, for women. Tobacco also dulls the hair and withers the skin.

Tobacco is a drug!

Tobacco rapidly generates a form of addiction that is very hard to escape. Even the first cigarette, often lit to be part of a group, can be dangerous.

Tobacco is an open door to other dependencies!

Those addicted to alcohol or other drugs, whether soft or hard, often started using these by first becoming addicted to tobacco.

Tobacco is harmful for those close to the smoker!

Besides the annoyance suffered by those close to you, smoke causes discomfort and immediate or long term diseases. Children, in particular, are vulnerable to other people’s smoke.

Tobacco is out of fashion!

Young people often associate tobacco with an adolescent form of rebellion against authority. Smoking is also forbidden in many public places and has become an act that now needs to be carried out secretly, in isolation, while clearly knowing the dangers you’re exposing yourself to. Smokers can also appear irresponsible, individualistic, and uncaring for those around them.

For more information about how to stay strong and avoid smoking visit the EU's Help website