The nicotine in cigarettes is addictive, making it very hard to quit smoking, but it is never too early, or too late, to quit smoking and improve your health.

When you smoke cigarettes there are two groups of chemicals that negatively affect your health. The smoke that is inhaled from cigarettes contains thousands of toxic substances that can cause cancer, heart disease, stroke, chronic bronchitis, asthma and emphysema. The nicotine in cigarettes is addictive, making it very hard to quit smoking, but it is never too early, or too late, to quit smoking and improve your health. Inhaling the smoke from other people’s cigarettes can also affect your health. This is known as ‘second-hand’ or passive smoking. People who don’t smoke themselves, but are exposed to smoke from other peoples’ cigarettes have increased asthma symptoms, and an increased risk of developing lung cancer and heart disease.

Quit Smoking brochure (111KB PDF)