Exploding e-cigarettes putting lives at risk

The safety of electronic cigarettes has been plunged into further doubt after an electronic cigarette user almost had his legs blown off due to one of the devices ‘exploding like a grenade’.

Medics that initially treated 48-year-old David Aspinall from Wigan, thought he had been the unfortunate victim of a gun attack when they first saw his gruesome, serve injuries.

Mr Aspinall’s life was almost destroyed by the exploding e-cigarette as his home quickly set ablaze and he then had to spend 9 days in hospital recovering from the traumatic ordeal.

He was in the middle of using the device when it overheated and exploded, resulting in shards of metal ripping into his limbs and his home being set on fire.

Speaking to The Sun, Mr Aspinall, who now faces up to three years of skin grafts to recover, said: “It glowed and burned in my hand. I dropped it and it exploded. There was lots of blood, a huge hole in one leg and a gash in the other. It could have blown my head off. The surgeon said it was like someone had used a gun.”

Even though ex-decorator Mr Aspinall had suffering shocking injuries and lost a litre of blood in the process, he managed to reach his neighbour, who likened the scene to that in a horror film.

Mr Aspinall has now reverted to conventional cigarettes, arguing – maybe questionably – that they are the safer option: He added: “I’m back on ciggies. It’s safest”, and is now proceeding to sue the maker of the Mutant Clone e-cigarette for compensation. The shop who sold him the device has blamed faulty batteries for the disaster.

This is not the first time an electronic cigarette has exploded however, and questions will now be raised about the safety of them.

. In August of this year, David Thomson, 62, died at home in Wallasey, Merseyside, after an e-cigarette he had left to charge then exploded and ignited oxygen equipment in the same room.

. In April of this year, pensioner Jen Booth was on a ward at Wythenshawe Hospital, Manchester, when an e-cigarette ignited her oxygen supply and engulfed her in flames. The 65-year-old suffered serious burns.

. In the same month Jen Booth suffered burns, a woman in Barking, East London required hospital treatment due to smoke inhalation and shock after her flat was set alight – all because of an e-cigarette being used with an incompatible charger.

. Also in April, CCTV managed to capture the moment an e-cigarette exploded into flames at the Buck Inn Hotel in Richmond, South-West London. Pub worker Laura Baty, 18, was fortunate to escape severe injury.

It is perhaps for these reasons for many are calling for much tighter regulations on the sale of e-cigarettes. With Stoptober still having almost a fortnight to run, it could be wise for smokers to try and quit smoking for good with smoking cessation treatment, such as Pfizer’s Champix. This can mimic the effect of nicotine on the body, reduce the urge to smoke, and even lessen the enjoyment of cigarettes if you do give-in to willpower and smoke whilst on the treatment. It is available today from Medical Specialists® Pharmacy from the drastically lowered price of as little as £27.48* per pack
(*based on a private prescription price).

Cancer patients could be more nicotine dependent with e-cigarettes

A new study into e-cigarettes has put further fuel onto the fire about just how useful a tool they are in helping smokers successfully quit smoking, after researchers found cancer patients who used c-cigs to try and stop smoking actually ended up more addicted to nicotine.

The findings have been published online by the journal Cancer, and will undoubtedly spark further doubts regarding the devices  that have come under scrutiny from the World Health Organisation in recent years, who want tighter regulations on them and a banning of them being used indoors.

The new study was conducted by researchers at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre in New York City, who assessed 1,074 cancer patients who were smokers and that had signed up to stop smoking schemes at cancer centre’s between 2012 and 2013.

The researchers discovered a three-fold rise in e-cigarette use from 2012 to 2013 – increasing from 10.6% to 38.5%.

When the patients’ enrolled into the smoking programme, the researchers determined that those also using e-cigarettes were more dependent on nicotine compared to those not using them, had tried to quit smoking on more occasions, and had a higher risk of developing cancer of the lungs, head, or neck.

During a follow-up assessment, it was found that seven-day abstinence rates were comparable with both e-cigarette users and non-users. Researchers found rates of 44.4% for e-cigarette users and 43.1% for non-users. By the time the study came to a conclusion, those using e-cigarettes were just as likely as non-users to be smoking regular cigarettes.

Dr Jamie Ostroff, lead researcher said: “Consistent with recent observations of increased e-cigarette use in the general population, our findings illustrate that e-cigarette use among tobacco-dependent cancer patients has increased within the past two years.”

She admitted further studies would be needed due to limitations with this one, saying: “Controlled research is needed to evaluate the potential harms and benefits of e-cigarettes as a potential cessation approach for cancer patients. In the meantime, oncologists should advise all smokers to quit smoking traditional combustible cigarettes, encourage use of FDA-approved cessation medications, refer patients for smoking cessation counselling, and provide education about the potential risks and lack of known benefits of long-term e-cigarette use.”

One such smoking cessation treatment is Pfizer’s highly popular Champix, of which Medical Specialists® Pharmacy have been inundated with requests for recently in the run up to Stoptober on 1 October.

Stoptober is an annual campaign run by Public Health England, which challenges all smokers to abstain for 28 days. The idea for 28 days of no smoking is that it is believed smokers are 5 times more likely to stop smoking if they can last the duration of the challenge. Keep checking the Medical Specialists® website for more information about Stoptober in the run up to it, including more to get involved and support available for smokers looking to quit.

Fear of weight gain preventing smokers from quitting

Most people are in agreement that smoking is bad. There are thousands of toxic chemicals contained within just a single cigarette that can cause a variety of different types of cancer and heart disease, not to mention the soaring cost of actually buying the cigarettes at a time of financial struggle in Britain.

However, a new study suggests some people are forgetting how dangerous smoking is to themselves and those around them (via secondhand smoke) and are reluctant to quit smoking due to fear of piling on weight after they have stopped. Nicotine serves as an appetite suppressant, so after quitting smoking it is fairly normal for your appetite to increase and nicotine also raises your metabolic rate – heavy smokers can burn as many as 200 extra calories per day.

Researchers from the Penn State College of Medicine assessed 186 smokers that had sought help for quitting smoking – determined by their involvement in a smoking cessation treatment study – and 102 smokers that were not interested in treatment, avoiding the treatment study altogether. Each smoker went through at least five cigarettes on a daily basis.

Participants were quizzed by the researchers about any previous attempts they had made to quit smoking, any instances they had done so and put weight on, and if they were worried about gaining weight if they successfully stopped smoking in the near future.

Fear of gaining weight was equal amongst the two groups but previous episodes of weight gain appeared to impact the urge of the smokers to seek treatment again after this.

Around half of those involved in the study had put weight on when trying to quit smoking and the same people were more likely to not bother attempting to seek smoking treatment again.

Those behind the study say that patients should receive more help from doctors and be asked about their experience with weight fluctuations as well as reassure the patient there are weight management ideas that can be included in their treatment for stopping smoking.

This worrying trend of smokers continuing their habit due to the fear of gaining weight is clearly an issue that needs tackling. Despite their being an abundance of benefits to be had from stopping smoking, few want to trade in a nicotine addiction for a food addiction.

However, rest assure that not everybody gains weight after they have kicked cigarettes into touch. You are more at risk if you are a heavy smoker, a heavy drinker or are already overweight. Those that do gain a few pounds need not panic too much as there are strategies you can undergo to help you control your weight.

For instance, regular exercising may help to avert half the expected weight in the initial year after stopping smoking. By gradually building up to around 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise each week (fast walking, cycling or swimming) this will help to burn off calories and keep the cigarette cravings to a minimum.

Smoking cessation medications such as Pfizer’s Champix can also help tremendously, actually doubling your chances of successfully stopping smoking and can help to limit weight gain in the first few months.

Fake Viagra amongst 30 million Yuan haul seized in China

Shanghai police officers working together with those from three other provinces – Hubei, Zhejiang, and Hebei – have shut down the illicit operations of six criminal rings throughout China following the confiscation of 2,600kg worth of the erectile dysfunction medications such as Viagra.

According to a press release, Shanghai police initiated an investigation after a number of brand name sexual enhancement drugs were found contained in a dubious looking express delivery parcel.
Police then forwarded a sample of the contents to the local food and drug administration for analysis, who confirmed that the drugs had not adhered to any manufacturing regulations.

The parcel was tracked to an adult store on Fengzhuang Road North, which apparently had previously closed down, but not without the owners leaving a phone number plastered on the door before vacating the building. After ringing the number provided, an officer was then greeted by a male from the ironware shop next door!

The male in question, surnamed ‘Dong’, then casually displayed his collection of other phony erectile dysfunction pills for the officer. Of course, Dong was subsequently arrested and several boxes of brand name counterfeit drugs were discovered inside the ironware store.

Seven people were then arrested and on June 24 in excess of 10,000 pills were seized in a warehouse raid in the Hubei Province. Files contained in the building showed that just between the months of January to April, more than 2,600 counterfeit drugs worth over 30 million Yuan (£3.23 million) had been transported to various distributors around China. Those arrested admitted their manufacturing costs for the fake drugs were just a dozen Yuan, and sold on for several hundred Yuan.

The news comes just a month after it was reported the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seized a haul of over $41 million (£26.9 million) worth of substandard or counterfeit medication and shut down 1,677 websites selling such poorly produced and dangerous products.

The issue of counterfeit medicine looks to be one that will be around for the long-term whilst it is profitable for the criminals involved. However, organisations such as Pfizer  and Medical Specialists Pharmacy will persevere in the fight to beat the production and sale of counterfeit medicine.
Your health and well-being are not taken into account at any time by criminals these low-cost fake drugs often contain little or no of the active ingredient, or highly toxic ingredients such as arsenic, brick dust, floor wax and cartridge ink!

However, you can undergo an online consultation today with one of Medical Specialists’ GMC-registered Doctors and we supply genuine prescription and non-prescription medicines to treat a wide range of conditions such as: male impotence, male hair loss, female hair loss, acne, obesity, high cholesterol and many more. Once approved by the Doctor, they will then write you a prescription which is passed to our in-house Pharmacy team and subsequently dispensed and dispatched to you within a mere 24 hours! (Allow extra time for overseas deliveries).

Crackdown on e-cigarettes: Stricter regulations announced

In three years’ time The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will begin to regulate e-cigarettes as medicines when new European-wide tobacco laws are due to be introduced.

The MHRA have confirmed from 2016, cigarette manufacturers will face much stricter regulations than previously, being forced to adhere to strict safety standards or risk their products being banned.
E-cigarettes contain nicotine, which can be highly addictive and may even cause heart problems.

However, there are no harmful chemicals that are contained in regular tobacco cigarettes such as carbon dioxide and tar. The decision, announced yesterday by the MHRA, will cover all products currently on the market that contain nicotine.

Along with smoking cessation medication such as Pfizer’s Champix, e-cigarettes have increased in popularity over recent years and there are an estimated 1.3million users just in the UK alone. The battery-powered devices are designed to resemble a real cigarette, but do not require any match or flame to be smoked.

Liquid nicotine is converted into a mist, or vapour, that the user inhales – simulating the process of smoking. As the devices emit a smoke-like water vapour, this has led to the term ‘vaping’ being commonly referred to for their use.

E-cigarettes that are deemed fit for purpose and pass the new safety standards will then be available to obtain on prescription from the NHS as an aid for stopping smoking.

From 2016, smokers eager to quit will still be able to get their e-cigarettes over the counter in supermarkets and newsagents, however manufacturers will now have to apply for a licence beforehand and will be prohibited at advertising any products judged to be targeted at under-16s.
Currently there are chocolate and bubble-gum-flavoured products being sold, but by 2016 it is unlikely these would be licensed. Some argue those particular flavoured-products are merely a ‘gateway to smoking’ for youngsters, and risk helping them to smart smoking when otherwise they wouldn’t.

The debate regarding the pros and cons of e-cigarettes is one that will not go away anytime soon. Previously, health experts have voiced their opinions that millions of lives could be saved if smokers switched to e-cigarettes.

However, unlike regular cigarettes due to the smoking ban, the electronic devices are permitted to be smoked in public places such as bars, restaurants and public transport. There are those who believe this is ‘normalising’ something which is now generally viewed as unacceptable.

Speaking yesterday after the news was announced of the proposed regulations, Jeremy Mean, group manager of vigilance and risk management of medicines at the MHRA, said: “Reducing the harms of smoking to smokers and those around them is a key government health priority. Our research has shown that existing electronic cigarettes and other nicotine-containing products on the market are not good enough to meet this public health priority. Some NCPs (nicotine-containing products) are already licensed and the government’s decision to work towards medicines licensing for all these products is designed to deliver quality products that will support smokers to cut down and to quit. The decision announced today provides a framework that will enable good quality products to be widely available. It’s not about banning products that some people find useful, it’s about making sure that smokers have an effective alternative that they can rely on to meet their needs.”

Whether people can completely rely on e-cigarettes though remains to be seen. In the past experts have stated that users of the products cannot be guarantee of the purity of the nicotine contained inside them and MHRA research has discovered that amounts of nicotine can be ‘considerably different’ from the level printed on the label, casting doubt on exactly how useful the products are to those who are trying to cut down or stop smoking, a MHRA spokesman said.

The previously mentioned smoking cessation medication Champix is a drug which contains no nicotine and works by stimulating the nicotine receptors in the brain, thereby reducing craving and withdrawal symptoms you may experience when stopping smoking. In addition, Champix can also reduce the enjoyment of cigarettes if you do smoke when on the treatment. Champix is available today from Medically Specialists Pharmacy from as little as just £75.00 per pack, a small price to protect your long-term health.

Smoking ban leads to annual 5% drop in asthma hospital emergencies

An annual 5% drop in hospital admissions for asthma patients in England requiring treatment could be attributed to the introduction of the 2007 smoking ban, which made it illegal to smoke in all enclosed public places such as restaurants, nightclubs, bars and shopping centres.

The 5% drop basically means that there are around 1900 fewer asthma-related admissions every year, say the authors of a new study who looked at the number of emergency asthma admissions for adults aged 16 and above in England between the duration of April 1997 and December 2010. Affecting roughly 5.9% of the population, the prevalence of asthma in England stands at one of the largest in the world.

For the study, published in the journal Thorax, Researchers based at the University of Bath discovered that there were a total of 502,000 ‘emergency’ hospital visits due to asthma in this time frame. Unsurprisingly, with cold weather being a trigger for symptoms to flare up, more admissions were evident throughout winter months compared to the summer; however numbers of admissions vastly differed depending on the area of the country.

Researchers took into account factors such as varying seasonal temperatures, differences in population size, and long-term patterns in regards to the prevalence of asthma. After considering all of the aforementioned factors, they discovered that emergency admissions for adults with asthma decreased by 4.9% during each of the first three years after the 2007 smoking ban, with a similar percentage decline in all geographical regions of England.

Dr Michelle Sims, author of the paper, said the benefits of the anti-smoking legislation were clear to see, commenting: “Secondhand smoke exposure has significant adverse health effects on the adult respiratory system with current evidence suggesting that it contributes to the onset and exacerbation of asthma. There is already evidence that smoke free legislation in England is associated with reductions in second hand smoke exposure among non-smoking adults and fewer emergency hospital admissions for heart attacks and childhood asthma. Our findings show that these health benefits extend to adult asthma.”

Emily Humphreys, head of policy and public affairs at the charity Asthma UK, said: “Eight out of 10 people with asthma tell us that other people’s smoke makes their asthma worse. That’s why we campaigned for the smoke-free laws and are delighted to see evidence of the benefits these are having on the millions of people with asthma in England. By taking action to reduce asthma triggers, we can prevent asthma attacks that can lead to hospitalisation and even death. However, more still needs to be done to prevent attacks, which kill three people each day in the UK.”

This new study is interesting and certainly highlights how cigarette smoke and asthma can be strongly connected. The findings follow that of a separate study which Medical Specialists Pharmacy reported back in January. Conducted by a team at Imperial College London, that particular study looked at admission rates spanning back to April 2002 and found an incredible 12% decline in childhood asthma hospital admissions during the first 12 months after the ban. This was calculated by taking into account a predicted 2.2% rise annually – and a decline continued in subsequent years with 3.4% fall per year for the next two years.

Asthma is a serious condition that is only worsened by exposure to cigarette smoke. Medical Specialists Pharmacy advise you to immediately quit smoking if you or a loved one also suffers from asthma, and we are able to help you achieve this with the aid of the smoking cessation medication Champix.

Champix mimics the effect of nicotine on the body, reducing the urge to smoke and relieving withdrawal symptoms. It can also decrease the enjoyment you experience of smoking if you are still smoking whilst on the treatment. The medication equates to just £75.00 per pack – inexpensive compared to an estimated £2,555 you can save each year by quitting smoking!

Alternatively, visit the ‘Asthma and Allergies’ area of the Medical Specialists website for a full list of all the preventer and reliever inhalers we provide for suitable patients.

Secondhand smoke could impair childhood kidney function

Whilst many teenagers may believe that smoking cigarettes will improve their popularity amongst friends and gain them misguided admiration in the playground, they should also be aware of the damage that cigarettes do to their adolescent bodies after a study has linked secondhand smoke exposure to effects on kidney function beginning in childhood.

The study, led by Esther Garcia-Esquinas, MD, of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at John Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and published April 8 in the journal Pediatrics, was conducted to see if secondhand smoke exposure could be attributed to chronic kidney disease in children.

A cross-sectional study was therefore carried out, comprising of an analysis of 7,516 adolescents aged between 12 and 17; all of whom were involved in the 1999-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

The teens all had blood tests to determine any creatinine and cotinine levels. Creatinine is a waste break-down product from muscle tissue in the body that is filtered through the kidneys. Doctors look at a person’s blood creatinine level as a test to determine kidney function and the kidneys’ ability to handle creatinine is known as the ‘creatinine clearance rate’.

‘Cotinine’, an anagram of nicotine, is an alkaloid chemical contained in tobacco and is also a product that is created by metabolising nicotine. By measuring the levels of cotinine in an individual’s bloodstream, it is possible to extract information on their recent use of tobacco in addition to assessing how much secondhand smoking the person has been exposed to.

The teens within the study who admitted that they smoked or those with serum cotinine levels found to be over 10 ng/mL, were regarded as ‘active smokers’. Those who lived with at least one person who smoked or had cotinine levels measuring at least 0.05 ng/mL, were classified as being exposed to secondhand smoke. In addition, any study participants with serum cotinine levels under 0.05 ng/mL, not living with a smoker and had not smoked in the previous month, were viewed as being unexposed to tobacco.

Researchers analysed the glomerular filtration rate, or eGFR, level by looking at the creatinine levels. This helps to understand how much blood a person’s kidneys are filtering to get a better picture of kidney function.

It was discovered that the teens’ eGFR declined at the same rate that their cotinine concentration in the blood increased. This pattern was evident even after the participants’ weight was taken into account as well as and socioeconomic and demographic factors.

Jeffrey Fadrowski, MD, MHS, co-author of the study and an assistant professor in Pediatric Nephrology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, commented: “Small changes in the distribution of estimated glomerular filtration rate levels in the population could have a substantial impact in kidney-related illness, as it is well known for changes in blood pressure levels and hypertension-related disease. Evaluating potential secondhand smoke exposure and providing recommendations to minimize exposure should continue to be incorporated as part of children’s routine medical care.”

Other researchers in the study added: “Evidence from studies in adult populations suggest that smoking, particularly heavy smoking and cumulative smoking exposure, is an independent risk factor for chronic kidney disease in both genders, as shown in large, prospective observational studies.”

Smoking app shows how our looks can be affected by cigarettes

Have you ever wanted a sneak peek into the future and see how you could appear in years to come? Well now you can with the help of a new smartphone app that gives smokers the chance to take a deep breath and potentially be horrified at how cigarettes will destroy their looks if they do not quit smoking.

The new app, available for free on Android and iPhone, has been devised by the NHS and goes by the name of ‘The Smoking Time Machine’. It could be viewed as a clever and original method of persuading youngsters not to start pumping into their bodies the 4,000 chemicals that are contained in just a single cigarette. The app may also persuade current smokers to quit if they are shocked at how their looks will be severely ravaged in the near future.

Kate Norman, from Cumbria Partnership NHS Trust, who was responsible for the free app in conjunction with its month-long stop smoking campaign, said: “Young people – and teenagers especially – don’t necessarily think the obvious consequences of smoking such as cancer and lung disease is going to happen to them. But this app uses their face and shows them how they will look. It’s something that is very close to home and hard to ignore.”

Merely by using a photograph of your face, the app will age your appearance to depict the damaging effects in 20 years’ time if you smoke, or continue to carry on the habit. The altered picture then shows the user to have an unhealthy, grey appearance to the skin, significantly deeper wrinkles around the eyes and mouth, and longer jowls. The pictures may be stored and shared amongst friends as a small reminder of what damage cigarettes will do to their current younger and fresher appearance.

Forensic artist Auriole Prince of digital marketing company ‘Change my Face’, commented: “This is the first time Smoking Time Machine has been used in a public health campaign and we think the app works brilliantly as a shock tactic to show people what will happen to their appearance if they carry on smoking.”

The literature produced by Cumbria Partnership NHS Trust will further worry smokers when they read it and learn that the same chemicals contained in cigarettes are also in highly hazardous substances such as jet fuel, embalming fluid, bleach and rat poison!

The Trust’s research discovered that around 40% of frequent smokers manage to develop an addiction prior to the age of 16. Therefore, the shock element of this new smartphone could have an impact with image-conscious teenagers.

For all smokers over the age of 18, why not quit smoking today with the help of the smoking cessation medication Champix, and help to prevent the degradation of your looks! All you have to do is complete the simple four-step online questionnaire, and if the online consultation is approved by one of our Doctors, they will write a prescription that will be dispensed by our in-house pharmacy team, dispatched to you at your home, your place of work, or where ever you choose, discreetly within 24 hours. The medication equates to just £75.00 per pack.

Millions of smokers urged to quit for No Smoking Day

An event that ‘unofficially’ first began thirty years ago is still going strong today as national No Smoking Day is upon us, with an estimated 750,000 smokers using the day as a springboard to a much healthier, tobacco-free future.  No Smoking Day is being supported by the UK charity WeQuit and the British Heart Foundation.

‘Don’t Smoke Day’, as it was first referred to back in 1983 by media, was the brainchild of a retired hospital administrator named Tom Hurst who penned a letter to the Minister for Health, requesting such a day. Hurst was fully aware of the potentially-fatal effects of smoking and believed it was necessary for parliament to implement a day that raised awareness of the issue.

Unfortunately for Hurst, the reply he received back was less than encouraging; “The Minister feels he is unable to support campaigns which might mislead the public into assuming that a causal relationship between tobacco smoking and cancer had been definitely proved.”

Of course, the Minister’s replied has been shown to be nonsense in the subsequent thirty years and it seems that more studies emerge on a daily basis that clearly demonstrate  how dangerous smoking is, being linked to many terminal cancers in addition to other serious health conditions such as multi-generational asthma, sudden cardiac death, osteoporosis and many more.

Realising that many smokers are still ignorant to the damage they are doing to their bodies and turning a blind eye to it, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) have taken advantage of the yearly format to alternate the theme of the day, instead focusing on where else cigarettes can impact smokers – their pockets.

Therefore, those who want to quit smoking are being encouraged to ‘Swap Fags for Swag’. The BHF have even listed the staggering amount of money that can be saved over the duration of a year by giving up, in addition to other more appealing things that the cash can be spent on.
They say the financial gains of stopping smoking are:

1 day (£7): Two movie rentals or a new lipstick.
1 week (£49): A family cinema trip or a meal for two.
1 month (£210): A shopping spree or premiership football tickets.
3 months (£630): A new laptop or the latest flat screen TV.
6 months (£1,260): A leather suite or a home cinema.
1 year (£2,555): A new kitchen or a holiday of a lifetime.

A main reason why the British Heart Foundation are involved in No Smoking Day is because smoking doubles a person’s risk of heart attack and a report they have recently conducted has found that an incredible 82% of smokers have at some point attempted to kick the habit and not succeeded.
In total, 2010 smokers were surveyed and over one in ten commented they were ‘desperate’ to stop smoking. Moreover, 40% had tried to quit between four and 21 times.

Dr Mike Knapton, Associate Medical Director for the BHF, said: “Every year more than 100,000 smokers die because of their addiction. This addiction can be incredibly hard to break and we hear time and again of smokers who are absolutely desperate to quit, they just don’t know where to start. The report reveals that a quarter of smokers are more motivated to give up for financial reasons rather than to benefit their health. The downward trend in smoking rates has plateaued in recent years, proving we need to renew our efforts to help our ‘final fifth’ quit. Often these are long-term smokers, or people surrounded by family, friends and colleagues who smoke. They’re harder to reach, and they’ll probably find it hard to quit. That’s why we all need to reinvigorate our efforts to help smokers and UK governments are part of the mix. We need investment in local stop smoking services and measures such as standardised packaging to help protect our children from the fatal addiction so many people are currently battling with.”

Medical Specialists Pharmacy is able to help you quit smoking with the aid of the smoking cessation medication Champix, meaning you will both protect your health and save huge amounts of money in the future as the government continually raise tobacco prices.

Champix mimics the effect of nicotine on the body, reducing the urge to smoke and relieving withdrawal symptoms. It can also decrease the enjoyment you experience of smoking if you are still smoking whilst on the treatment. The medication equates to just £75.00 per pack – inexpensive in comparison to the approximate £2,555 you can save by quitting smoking!

Hospital blasted for proposed smoking shelter next to cancer ward

Bosses at The University of North Staffordshire hospital have caused a huge outpouring of anger after its plans to construct a smoking shelter outside a cancer ward were made public.

The hospital initially spoke of their proposed planning permission for five smoking shelters on-site in October of last year after staff, patients and visitors complained that smokers were repeatedly ignoring the rules regarding the strict no-smoking policy for directly outside the entrances to the hospital. However, further complaints were also made because of the fact that smokers would often convene in large groups on the A34, which is close by.

At the time, The hospital’s chief nurse Liz Rix said: “We want to encourage people not to smoke because of their health, but it’s become very difficult [to enforce the smoking ban].We have had so many complaints from staff, patients and visitors to the hospital about what you can see outside the grounds that we thought we had to try something different.” She also added that the hospital ‘absolutely do not condone’ smoking and would be ‘encouraging and supporting’ patients to stop smoking altogether.

If Stoke-on-Trent City Council give the go-ahead for the planning application (a decision is expected in February), then the five smoking shelters are to be erected next to two main entrances, the hospital’s maternity block, the accident and emergency unit and what has maybe caused the most fury – outside of the hospital’s cancer ward.

Cancer charities and people who have suffered with the deadly disease – commonly attributed to smoking – have now spoke out and blasted the prospect of a smoking shelter right beside a place where people are being treated for cancer, arguing it is a thoughtless and insensitive move from the hospital.

Cancer survivor Harry Larkins, 70, from Cheadle, Staffs, successfully managed to overcome cancer back in 2009 but still attends a check-up each year at the hospital. He hit out at the plans and said: “I know they have to accommodate smokers, but a lot of people in the cancer ward have smoked throughout their lives and don’t need reminding that could be the reason they are there. It’s just plain insensitive. It is a huge site and they could put them somewhere a lot more discreet. I think it’s a terrible error of judgement.”

Councillor Colin Eastwood, chairman of Newcastle Borough Council’s Health Scrutiny Committee, gave a scathing verdict of the hospital’s smoking shelters, saying: “I don’t feel the shelters are really addressing the problem of smoking. It is almost like condoning smoking. Smoking is a real issue in the local area and it concerns me that the hospital is providing for them. What they should be doing is supporting smokers who are admitted to hospital to quit the habit.”

To try and defend the plans, the chief nurse Lisa Rix commented: “We do not condone smoking on our premises by patients, visitors or staff. However, a degree of pragmatism has been adopted to keep the hospital clean and tidy and smokers away from building entrances. The beautiful main entrance has become a particular problem area with a large number of smokers congregating and at times it has been difficult to keep the area clean. We accept this has caused problems for neighbouring residential areas and are working with unions to see what actions can be taken to alleviate this. We enforce a blanket ban on staff smoking on our property and staff will not be allowed to use the shelters.”

Smoking is without doubt the most avoidable cause of many cancers and is often directly linked to throat, mouth, cervix, stomach, bowel and kidney cancer. The biggest killer though in regards to smoking-related cancers is lung cancer – responsible for over four out of every five cancer cases. Unfortunately lung cancer has one of the worst survival rates of any type of cancer but it is preventable with swift action that involves quitting smoking as soon as possible before it is too late.

Many people are able to give up smoking through the aid of the smoking cessation medication Champix, which works by replicating the effect of nicotine on the body. Therefore, it both reduces the urge to smoke and relieves withdrawal symptoms. Although you are not recommended to smoke after your quit date, Champix can also reduce the enjoyment of cigarettes if you do smoke when on treatment. It is available today from Medical Specialists Pharmacy from as little as just £75.00 per pack.