Recently, we have discovered a social enterprise that is all
about tackling tobacco use - particularly through challenging the way
children and young people think about smoking. Their main aim is to
reduce tobacco use for everybody, as well as to reduce the amount of new
smokers from beginning the habit. This particular social enterprise is
known as Tobacco Free Futures, who are based in Manchester. As part of
their aims, they run many projects, campaigns, events and activity,
which raise awareness for their cause.
As for why Tobacco Free Futures aims to tackle tobacco use, they claim on their website that every year in the UK, 206,000 people start to smoke. Additionally, 90% of those new smokers are under the age of 19. They also claim that half of those people who don't quit, will eventually be killed by their addiction, after suffering at the hands of related disease.
Tackling tobacco use therefore helps minimise the harm that comes from smoking, as well as impacting upon family and friends of those who smoke. In England alone, smoking is the cause for 79,100 deaths each year, which is more than obesity, alcohol use and illegal drugs combined.
Additionally, asides from health reasons, there are many economic factors that occur due to smoking. For example, smoking actually costs the English economy £14 billion each year, which includes £2.7 billion in direct NHS costs. This massive cost also includes costs that stem from second-hand smoking, costs to local authorities for related house fires, as well as costs due to litter cleaning.
Also, none of these costs match up in any way to the tax revenues received from cigarettes, which provides only around £9 billion each year in England. This means that smoking not only harms us as individuals, but it harms our society and local authorities on a wider, economic scale.
The final way that Tobacco Free Futures claims that smoking impacts very harmfully is through the effect onto debt and child poverty in the UK. Statistically, smoking and tobacco use is actually highest in the poorest families and communities around the country, and particularly in the most troubled families. Children with parents who smoke are far more likely to grow up to smoke, which creates a cycle in poor communities for this habit to continue.
On their website, they have a shocking graph that shows: the lower the family income, the more percentage of that income they will spend on cigarettes in general. This therefore means that smoking impacts further on these families that receive lower income, as the costs of smoking cuts their finances even further.
Therefore, now that we have outlined their main reasons behind tackling tobacco, do you agree that it is a worthwhile cause?
Tobacco Free Futures have campaigned and been involved in many changes to tobacco and cigarettes, as well as other main factors that all help current smokers to quit, and prevents young people from being attracted to start smoking. For example, they have been involved in recent changes to tobacco promotion, such as assisting with changing the cigarette boxes to be plain and unattractive, and concealing the tobacco stands in shops.
As a social enterprise, one of their core aims is to "Make Smoking History for Children", with ambitions to help future generations remain smoke and tobacco free. In order to do this, they support both regional and national tobacco control activity, offering consultancy and training to enable others to tackle tobacco in their local areas.
Another vital area is to try and encourage current smokers to quit, as there are currently around 10 million people who smoke in the UK. However, they claim that around 63% of these smokers want to quit. They participate in this encouragement therefore through holding campaigns, such as marketing and promotion that aim to target stopping smoking, as well as offering local support services for those attempting to give up the habit.
As for why Tobacco Free Futures aims to tackle tobacco use, they claim on their website that every year in the UK, 206,000 people start to smoke. Additionally, 90% of those new smokers are under the age of 19. They also claim that half of those people who don't quit, will eventually be killed by their addiction, after suffering at the hands of related disease.
Tackling tobacco use therefore helps minimise the harm that comes from smoking, as well as impacting upon family and friends of those who smoke. In England alone, smoking is the cause for 79,100 deaths each year, which is more than obesity, alcohol use and illegal drugs combined.
Additionally, asides from health reasons, there are many economic factors that occur due to smoking. For example, smoking actually costs the English economy £14 billion each year, which includes £2.7 billion in direct NHS costs. This massive cost also includes costs that stem from second-hand smoking, costs to local authorities for related house fires, as well as costs due to litter cleaning.
Also, none of these costs match up in any way to the tax revenues received from cigarettes, which provides only around £9 billion each year in England. This means that smoking not only harms us as individuals, but it harms our society and local authorities on a wider, economic scale.
The final way that Tobacco Free Futures claims that smoking impacts very harmfully is through the effect onto debt and child poverty in the UK. Statistically, smoking and tobacco use is actually highest in the poorest families and communities around the country, and particularly in the most troubled families. Children with parents who smoke are far more likely to grow up to smoke, which creates a cycle in poor communities for this habit to continue.
On their website, they have a shocking graph that shows: the lower the family income, the more percentage of that income they will spend on cigarettes in general. This therefore means that smoking impacts further on these families that receive lower income, as the costs of smoking cuts their finances even further.
Therefore, now that we have outlined their main reasons behind tackling tobacco, do you agree that it is a worthwhile cause?
Tobacco Free Futures have campaigned and been involved in many changes to tobacco and cigarettes, as well as other main factors that all help current smokers to quit, and prevents young people from being attracted to start smoking. For example, they have been involved in recent changes to tobacco promotion, such as assisting with changing the cigarette boxes to be plain and unattractive, and concealing the tobacco stands in shops.
As a social enterprise, one of their core aims is to "Make Smoking History for Children", with ambitions to help future generations remain smoke and tobacco free. In order to do this, they support both regional and national tobacco control activity, offering consultancy and training to enable others to tackle tobacco in their local areas.
Another vital area is to try and encourage current smokers to quit, as there are currently around 10 million people who smoke in the UK. However, they claim that around 63% of these smokers want to quit. They participate in this encouragement therefore through holding campaigns, such as marketing and promotion that aim to target stopping smoking, as well as offering local support services for those attempting to give up the habit.
