In an effort to encourage smokers to quit and young people not to start, the Canadian Lung Association is offering the use of an online tool so people can face up to the harmful effects of smoking.
“You can’t always see how smoking affects your entire body, but this online tool allows you to see how smoking could affect your looks,” says Heather Borquez, CEO and president of the Canadian Lung Association. “We’re offering people the opportunity to see how they would look in the future if they start smoking or continue to smoke.”
Woman in Cigarette Smoke
Nearly five million Canadians continue to smoke and up to half of them will become ill or die from continued tobacco use.
In 2008-09, the percentage of youth in grades 6-9 that had ever tried smoking cigarettes ranged from a low of 14% in Ontario to a high of 36% in Quebec. In grades 10-12, youth that had ever tried smoking cigarettes ranged from a low of 44% in Ontario to a high of 61% in Saskatchewan.
From May 19th to June 6th, the Canadian Lung Association invites people to visit its Facebook page or their provincial Lung Association Facebook page, to get a promotional code that allows them to use the tool, free of charge.
Visitors can upload their image to age-me.com/lung and see a side-by-side, dramatic visual display of how their face will age naturally, or how they’ll look if they smoke.
“People can share their photo aging on their own Facebook page or post it to their provincial Lung Association Facebook page,” says Ms. Borquez. “We invite all Canadians to try this out and tell their friends and family to try it, too.”
How to quit smoking
There are many proven ways to quit smoking. To boost the chances of quitting, smokers should choose more than one method and pick what seems right for them. Each person is different. Smokers should speak to a health-care professional about the available options.
Fast Facts on Tobacco Use in Canada
- Tobacco is a leading preventable cause of death in Canada, responsible for over 37,000 deaths annually and about one third of cancers.
- More than 90 per cent of the estimated five million current Canadian smokers would like to quit, according to “Making Quit Happen: Canada’s Challenges to Smoking Cessation.”
- For the 79 per cent of smokers who have tried to quit, an average of six quit attempts were reported.
- The economic impact of tobacco use in Canada is also significant, with an estimated social cost of $17 billion per year.
- The most recent estimates indicate that tobacco-related illness costs Canadians $4.4 billion in direct health care costs, and is responsible for 2.2 million acute care hospital days.
