· Man U fans top
the Smokefree United League while Chelsea lags behind
· Andy
Townsend calls for football fans to kick it together by signing
for Smokefree United
Chelsea fans may be currently celebrating being top of the
Premier League, but there is room for improvement off the pitch as
they struggle to kick the habit and give smoking the red card.
Today, as the latest standings in the Smokefree United League are
announced, it's revealed that only 77 Blues fans have
signed for Smokefree United to quit smoking - leaving them
trailing behind their Man U rivals who top the table with 274,
more than treble the number of Chelsea fans pledging to quit.
Smokefree United is a virtual club of quitters that provides
coaching and support to help football fans and players to stop
smoking, www.nhs.uk/smokefreeunited.
Launched in October by the NHS and supported by the Premier League
and football legends Ian Wright, Gianfranco Zola, John Barnes and
Andy Townsend, more than 1,500 fans have already signed up. In
addition to quitting advice and entry into competitions to win
money can't buy prizes, footballers and fans that sign up
boost their team's position in the Smokefree United League.
Other winners in the Smokefree United League are Liverpool, who
despite lagging six places behind Chelsea in the Premier League,
have raced ahead in the quitting stakes and come in second with
182 quitters. Arsenal are in third with 138 fans followed by
Tottenham and Chelsea who with 84 and 77 fans respectively are
battling it out for the fourth spot.
talkSPORT host and former professional footballer Andy Townsend said:
"I'd encourage all football fans and players
who have thought about quitting to sign for Smokefree United.
Quitting Smoking will have a huge impact on your game and
you'll immediately become more competitive on the pitch
because your cardiovascular fitness will improve.
"Those who've signed for Smokefree United are
there to motivate each other when the going gets tough, to
celebrate the success of staying off the fags, and they can also
count on supportive messages from Ian Wright!"
JAYGFC, a Smokefree United quitter from Gillingham said:
"I signed up to Smokefree United and am now in my 7th
week of not smoking - I have started jogging and I feel great! I
did one week with the patches and that was it. I am loving life
again and didn't realise just how unfit I was!"
According to new research conducted on behalf of the NHS, some
football fans who smoke take the beautiful game more seriously
than others with a huge 53 per cent of Liverpool fans saying they
would give up smoking if their team was to win the double - more
than for any other team.
You're up to four times more likely to stop smoking
successfully with NHS Support. For help quitting, visit the
Smokefree United website at nhs.uk/smokefreeunited or call the NHS
Stop Smoking Helpline on 0800 917 0492
Notes to Editors
Smokefree United is open until 20 December 2009
To view the attached Smoke Free United table please visit the
following link:
http://nds.coi.gov.uk/Content/Detail.aspx?ReleaseID=408719&NewsAreaID=2&ClientID=46
Smokefree United Research
Smokefree United commissioned research into the attitudes of
football fans who smoke. Analysis of the top five clubs has led to
each club's fans receiving their own unique title:
Arsenal, the kick about champions
* As the kick about champions, Gunners are the most likely to get
off the couch and join the game. Almost half play football in
their spare time, 22% playing 11 a side and 24% playing five a
side, twice the average of other top five teams.
* And to show how committed they are to the game, Gunners are the
least likely to think it is acceptable for their team makes to
smoke, one third (32%) are against their team mates smoking.
Liverpool, the committed fans
* The reds are some of the most committed fans in the Premier
League, as over half (53%) would stop smoking if it meant
Liverpool won the double
* And they expect the same devotion from their team. Over half
the fans will not tolerate professional footballers smoking, with
63% viewing it as unacceptable
Manchester United, the true friend
* The reds are true friends and have the strongest sense of
camaraderie when it comes to smoking, almost half (48%) would stop
smoking if their mates did.
* To support their mates on the pitch, Manchester United fans are
the least likely to smoke on the sideline when having a kick
about, as 35% keep their cigarettes away from the match.
Tottenham Hotspur, the family man
* Spurs are keen to pass their love of the game to the next
generation, with one in four making sure they have regular kick
abouts with the kids, over twice that of the rival Gunners.
* As a result 27% want to quit the habit to keep up with their kids.
Chelsea, the laid back fan
* With success on the pitch possibly going to their heads, the
blues complacency shows as less than one third (32%) would give up
smoking if it meant Chelsea won the double
* And this relaxed attitude extends to getting off the couch as
Chelsea supporters are the least likely to play football
themselves, with over half (57%) playing no football at all!
Fans of Smokefree United
Gianfranco Zola and the West Ham United Squad:
"We're pleased to be supporting Smokefree United
and call on smokers to sign up and get help to quit.
There's plenty of online support to help you kick smoking
and you'll see an improvement in your game within a
week."
Premier League Head of Community Development Simon Morgan:
"The Premier League is right behind Smokefree United.
We are fully committed to improving the quality of thousands of
people's lives through the many health initiatives that
our clubs run. For example, our Premier League Health project sees
clubs all over the country tackle specific health issues that
their male fans face.
"Smokefree United provides a new and exciting way of
highlighting the benefits of going smokefree to football fans,
while giving them the ongoing support needed to successfully quit
smoking."
Premier League Clubs
The following Premier League clubs are supporting Smokefree
United, which complements much of the work they are already doing
to improve the health of their fans.
Tottenham
Tottenham Hotspur Foundation (THF) is currently delivering a
number of health related programmes. One of these programmes,
'Healthy Family', is an outreach education
intervention which focuses on obesity, oral health and physical
activity. As part of their overall health offer THF have also sent
a number of their coaches on smoking cessation training courses,
allowing them to help individuals from both the 'Healthy
Family' and other health related programmes stop smoking.
Under the umbrella of 'Healthy Family' an
additional programme, 'Premier Health' focuses
on men's health and is aimed at helping to tackle a
number of key areas within men's health such as smoking
and obesity.
Everton
Everton's Premier Health scheme aims to motivate and
inspire hard to reach males, in Liverpool, to make positive,
healthy lifestyle choices. Premier Health has six key health
themes: smoking cessation, cancer, substance and alcohol misuse,
sexual health, obesity and CVD and mental health. They provide
one-to-one mentoring support and take advantage of match day
environments at Goodison Park to publicise pertinent
men's health issues.
Sunderland
Sunderland AFC Foundation's 'Fit for
Football' scheme uses football coaching to deliver active
sessions aimed at helping people give up smoking, deal with health
inequalities and providing positive messages about healthy eating
and general well-being. They also help educate families about the
dangers of smoking, having a healthy diet, importance of exercise
and how to improve self esteem and confidence through their
'Family Learning through Football Fitness' programme.
Hull City
Hull City are launching a men's health programme in
October aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of men aged
18-39. They aim to reduce the number of men smoking through
smoking cessation seminars, and guidance will be given to those
determined to stop, with tailored services for more difficult cases.
Portsmouth
Portsmouth recently launched a campaign to educate men about
cancer, as part of a new initiative run by the Football
Foundation. The campaign will focus on the three main types of
cancer - lung, bowel and prostate - the first two of which are
most commonly associated with smoking. Portsmouth will have nurses
offering health checks and advice at its matches, and are also
starting up their own 'Premier Health' scheme to
help raise awareness of men's health issues through its
various community partnerships.
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers are involved in two men's health
initiatives that incorporate help and advice to stop smoking. The
first is the new 'Ahead of the game' campaign
which aims to raise the awareness of, amongst others, lung cancer,
through the power of football. They also take part in the
'Premier Health' initiative which aims to help
improve the state of men's health by encouraging healthy
lifestyles and offering advice on quitting smoking.
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers' Football in the Community is launching
a new Premier League Health project, which will run for three
years and specifically aims to help local men lead more fit and
healthy lifestyles. Men will be given advice on the dangers of
smoking and a poor diet and on what help is available to kick the
habit and improve their diet.
Fulham
Fulham Football Club Foundation will be targeting men in the
Lambeth area as part of their Premier Health project. They hope to
use football as a mental well-being enhancement tool and increase
access to statutory health care. They will address three main
areas of concern through issue based workshops: substance misuse,
including smoking; nutrition and sexual health.
Liverpool
Liverpool Football Club manages extensive healthy living
programmes: Healthy Stadia (focussing on fans, visitors and
employees), European Healthy Stadia (a network of 150 venues
sharing good practice), Truth 4 Youth assemblies, which include
health messages, and the Action 4 Health programme which includes
the Premier League Men's Health and Extra Time
programmes. As well as health promotion, the latter three
programmes include one-to-one health checks which are directly
linked to pathways to assist people to make lifestyle changes,
including smoking cessation. There are also four health
information kiosks in community centres. LFC works closely with
partners in the Liverpool Primary Care Trust, Liverpool City
Council, Premier League, Heart of Mersey and local community
groups to ensure that the most appropriate help is on offer.
What is Smokefree United?
Smokefree United is a virtual club of quitters - supported by
John Barnes, Ian Wright and the Premier League - that provides
coaching and support to help football fans and players to stop
smoking.
Quitters signing up will receive regular weekly contact over a
four week period via supportive emails from Ian Wright, entry into
competitions to win money-can't-buy prizes, and the
chance to send the club you support to the top of the Smokefree League.
Why is the Department of Health running Smokefree United?
The NHS Smokefree team understands that different messages and
triggers will motivate different people to make a quit attempt. By
discussing the many benefits of quitting within a football context
we want to let football fans and players know that if they stop
smoking they'll get more out of their game - both on the
pitch and by being able to spend more time with their family.
* The majority of male smokers (70%) would like to quit smoking
* Over 80 per cent of male smokers are football fans
What happens when you go Smokefree - benefits timeline
20 minutes Blood pressure and pulse rate return to normal
8 hours Nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in blood reduce by
half, oxygen levels return to normal
24 hours Carbon monoxide will be eliminated from the body. Lungs
start to clear out mucus and other smoking debris
48 hours There is no nicotine in the body. Ability to taste and
smell is greatly improved
72 hours Breathing becomes easier. Bronchial tubes begin to relax
and energy levels increase
2-12 weeks Your circulation improves
3-9 months Coughs, wheezing and breathing problems improve as
lung function increases by up to 10%
5 years Risk of heart attack falls to about half that of a smoker
10 years Risk of lung cancer falls to half that of a smoker. Risk
of heart attack falls to the same as someone who has never smoked
1. NHS Smokefree factsheet: Quitting
* Three-quarters of smokers (74%) say they would like to quit if
they could. Key statistics include:
* 58% of smokers say that they intend to quit in the next 12 months
* 86% of smokers cite at least one health reason for why they
want to quit
* 60% of current smokers have made a series attempt to quit in
the past five years
* 53% of smokers have sought some kind of help or advice for
quitting smoking
* 87% of people who have attempted to stop smoking in the last
year would like to stop smoking
* Heavy smokers are more likely to have tried to stop smoking
(87%)
* 55 %of smokers said that someone had asked them to stop smoking
- this tended to be a partner (22%), son or daughter
(17%) or a parent (16%)
* Women were more likely than men to say that their children were
asking them to quit (22% and 13% respectively)
* Only 7% of smokers who had previously managed to stop smoking,
had quit for two years or more, while 72% had only managed to quit
for six months or less
2. Telephone numbers for NHS Stop Smoking Support:
* NHS Smoking Helpline (0800 169 0 169)
* NHS Pregnancy Smoking Helpline (0800 169 9 169)
* NHS Asian Tobacco Helpline
* Urdu - 0800 169 0 881
* Punjabi - 0800 169 0 882
* Hindi - 0800 169 0 883
* Gujarati - 0800 169 0 884
* Bengali - 0800 169 0 885
3. NHS Smokefree factsheet: Top 10 tips for a successful quit attempt
Research shows smokers are up to four times more likely to stop
smoking successfully if they get support from their local NHS Stop
Smoking Service and Nicotine Replacement Therapy, compared with
relying on willpower alone.
The NHS Smokefree campaign suggests the following top ten tips to
help smokers on their path to become smokefree:
1. Order a free DVD from 0800 169 0 169 to find out about the
full range of NHS support available to help you quit.
2. Get support from trained NHS advisers who can help you to
understand your addiction and how to beat it.
3. Identify your smoking triggers and plan ahead. Try the
Addiction Test at www.nhs.uk/smokefree.
4. Use nicotine replacement products or other stop smoking
medicines to cope with the withdrawal symptoms. These are
available on prescription from the NHS.
5. Sign up for free text and email alerts from the Together
Programme with motivational tips and advice to keep you on track.
6. Avoid situations where you might be tempted to smoke again.
Plan ahead to cope with the hard times.
7. Note how much cash you're saving. Work out how long
it will take you to save for your dream purchase by using the
calculator on www.nhs.uk/smokefree.
8. Use a carbon monoxide monitor to see for yourself how quickly
your body recovers once you stop smoking. Local NHS Stop Smoking
Services offer carbon monoxide monitoring as part of their stop
smoking programmes.
9. Chuck out your ashtrays, matches and lighters and anything
else you needed to smoke. Put potpourri where your ashtrays used
to be - your home will smell fresher in no time at all.
10. But most importantly, take it one day at a time and reward
yourself every day
Contacts:
Department of Health
Phone: 020 7210 5221
NDS.DH@coi.gsi.gov.uk