IT’S not just health benefits South Tynesiders will notice if they stub out their bad habits.
According to the British Heart Foundation, money is a big motivator for people to quit smoking within the region, with one in five saying they could spend more on their family if they stopped buying cigarettes.
An average 20-a-day smoker spends £7 a day on a packet of cigarettes.
But if they gave up, after one week they could save £49 and take their loved ones to the cinema or pay their monthly mobile phone bill.
After two weeks, £98 in savings could be used to pay for the weekly shop.
A month smoke-free would save £210 and pay for quarterly energy bills.
And a room could be decorated with the £1,260 saved after six months of quitting.
And the total of £2,555 could buy the family a trip abroad after staying smoke-free for one year.
Recent health statistics for South Tyneside showed 26.7 per cent of men and 24.6 per cent of women smoked, both above the national average of 22 per cent.
Alarmingly, 25.5 per cent of the borough’s pregnant women smoked, far greater than the national figure of 13.5 per cent.
Deaths from lung cancer in South Tyneside are also higher than the UK rate.
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