North East among the best places in the UK for quitting smoking

A new study has revealed the number of people in each region of England who have reported successfully giving up smoking after setting a quit date, with the North East ranked highly in being able to turn away from the cigarettes.

Data from NHS Stop Smoking Service in England between April to September 2023 shows that the North East was ranked second in the number of people per 100,000 who were able to quit smoking, only being the runner up behind the South East.

The South East is the most successful region for quitting smoking, with 1,226 smokers per 100,000 have claimed to have given it up. The Isle of Wight is the most successful area in the South East with 3,124 people quitting per 100,000 smokers. Out of 4,294 who set a quit date, 803 people admitted to being unable to reach their target.

Sign up to the Shields Gazette’s newsletters to receive headline round-ups and breaking news alerts

In second place is the North East, with an average of 1,195 smokers per 100,000 who successfully managed to quit smoking between April to September 2023. The area with the most success is Gateshead, which has 2,682 successful quitters per 100,000 people. A total of 4,369 people set a quit date and 703 failed to quit within the period.

According to GoSmokeFree, who compiled the data, the South West is the least successful region in the UK to have stopped smoking with an average of 599 smokers per 100,000 giving it up.