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Kicking the smoking habit is tough, but success brings a host of benefits. Smokers who want to butt out permanently will find many organisations eager to offer free and professional counselling services to help them break free of nicotine's grip to live longer, healthier, happier lives.
The downside to smoking is well known. Studies show smokers have 10 times the risk of getting lung cancer than non-smokers. Smoking-related economic loss is $5.3 billion annually, and about 7 000 people die in Hong Kong each year from smoking-related diseases.
Apart from reinforcing tobacco-control laws, the Government works towards building a smoke-free culture in Hong Kong through taxation and education. More people are wisening up to the benefits of not smoking, and butting out. The latest figures put the proportion of smokers at 11.1%, down from 11.8% in 2008.
Two die-hard smokers, Andy Yu and Choy Fai-lung, called the Department of Health smoking cessation hotline, 1833 183, to overcome the challenges and reap the benefits of quitting.
The story of their experience appears on news.gov.hk today (March 24) in both text and video format.
Ends/Sunday, March 24, 2013
Issued at HKT 11:00
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