Public Health Wales has urged the country’s 440,000 smokers to quit

[helvella]

Obviously, the advice/suggestion is not restricted to Wales - this was just what I saw:

Public Health Wales has urged the country’s 440,000 smokers to quit now to reduce the risks from Covid-19 and said it has seen a rise in the number of people asking for help to stop.

It says smokers are more at risk from Covid-19 because they have weakened lung defences and more regular hand-to-mouth contact, giving more chances for picking up the virus. Many also have existing lung conditions caused by smoking.

According to Public Health Wales, hundreds of smokers have contacted the NHS Help Me Quit helpline since the outbreak began and in response more telephone support advisers have been drafted in.

Meanwhile, the website of the tobacco control campaign group ASH Wales has had a 40% increase in visitors, mostly searching for online advice on how to quit.

Ashley Gould, a public health consultant at Public Health Wales, said:

Seven in ten smokers in Wales say they would like to quit – there might never be a more important time than now to try harder than ever.

We know that Covid-19 is mainly a respiratory disease and research on similar viruses shows tobacco smoke increases the risks of this type of infection, and how serious it can be.

Suzanne Cass, CEO of Ash Wales, said:

We know that giving up smoking can be incredibly tough but there really is no more important time to quit. The health benefits kick in within minutes of stubbing out that last cigarette and continue to grow with time.

theguardian.com/politics/li...

Hypocrisy alert - I used to smoke.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Quitting smoking often leads to worsening of Hashimoto’s too .....but it’s still better to quit

But thyroid levels should be tested more frequently for minimum of two years after stopping smoking

verywellhealth.com/cigarett...

[Rapunzel]

No hypocrisy, Rod

Hypocrisy: the practice of claiming to have higher standards or more noble beliefs than is the case.

I used to smoke, too. And stopping smoking meant that my Hashi's presented SlowDragon

Now my beliefs are slightly more noble and I just smoke doobies. The difference it's made to my shredded knees is phenomenal.

Rave on dude 🚭🚬🌿

[helvella Administrator in reply to Rapunzel]

And there are suggestions that smoking is relevant in severity of covid-19 and, possibly, even susceptibility to coronavirus.

[Zephyrbear]

I used to smoke too but stopped after 20-a-day for 35 years 16 years ago... not only did I get slammed with the full effects of Hashimoto’s that had been bubbling under the surface for a couple of years almost instantaneously but I also spent weeks with a tight chest and a constant cough as my body decided to get rid of the accumulated rubbish in my lungs... I then had a period of feeling pretty good, even though the weight ballooned by 3 stone, but then developed a shortness of breath which was diagnosed as ‘asthma’ for which I need a steroid inhaler... so today I’m right back in the ‘at risk’ category. I wouldn’t ever light up again but sometimes ‘giving up’ ain’t all it’s cracked up to be...

[Lora7again]

My neighbor is self isolating because she is a heavy smoker. Luckily I have never smoked but my Dad did and that is why he now has COPD. He now regrets he ever smoked but it was different years ago and people were actually encouraged to smoke. My Grandfather died of lung cancer when he was 78 and I used to sit on his lap while he smoked his Woodbines. Just imagine if that had happened today ... he would have been reported for child abuse.

[helvella Administrator]

Today, the Guardian reports:

Smokers face a greater risk from coronavirus and may also be chancing with the welfare of their loved ones, Public Health England has warned.

Prof John Newton, Public Health England’s director of health, said that in light of the “unprecedented” pandemic sweeping the globe:

There has never been a more important time to stop smoking, not only for your own health but to protect those around you.

PHE said that smoking can cause damage to the lungs and airways, and Covid-19 attacks the respiratory system.

Officials also point to a “small but highly impactful” survey from China which finds that smokers with Covid-19 are 14 times more likely to develop severe disease.

theguardian.com/world/live/...