Smoke and Mirrors β How One Affects the Other
Ontario Lung Association Wants You to “Face” Smoking
January 19, 2011 @ 07:00AM
Toronto, Ontario - It's Weedless Wednesday and the Ontario Lung Association wants to create a healthier Ontario by encouraging smokers, of all ages, to quit and young Ontarians not to start.
“When young people start smoking, they’re not thinking of the future,” explains Emily Butko, a youth volunteer with the Ontario Lung Association’s Youth Advocacy Training Institute (YATI). “What they should be thinking though is that smoking is addictive and if they start, they may not be able to easily stop.”
Last year in Ontario alone, approximately one million people tried to quit, but were unsuccessful because nicotine is addictive.i
Seeing is Believing
When you see what smoking does on the outside, you can’t help but imagine what’s happening on the inside. On Weedless Wednesday, the Ontario Lung Association is providing 500 complimentary “photo agings” so young people can see what they’ll look like if they start to smoke or continue to smoke.
“It’s really gross what happens to your skin when you smoke,” says Emily. “People forget that smoking harms every single cell in your body and the damage can be seen on your face faster than you think.”
By logging onto the Ontario Lung Association’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/OntarioLungAssociation the first 500 visitors will be able to use the software, free of charge, by entering in the promotion code – nosmoke2011. Individuals can upload their image into the APRIL® software program (available directly at www.age-me.com), and see a side-by-side, dramatic, impactful visual display of how their face ages.
“I think that other youth will be shocked when they see how drastically smoking can change their looks. It’s pretty convincing not to start smoking or look for help to quit,” says Emily.
The Ontario Lung Association has partnered with Ontario-based Aprilage Inc., developers of the aging technology, to provide this unique experience during National Non-Smoking Week.
References
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i OTRU Quit Intentions and Behaviours Paper.
Boilerplate
About the Ontario Lung Association
The Ontario Lung Association is advocating for a comprehensive smoking cessation system, as part of an Ontario Lung Health Strategy, to improve lung health and prevent respiratory illness and disease among Ontarians. To show your support and sign the pledge, visit www.on.lung.ca.
The Lung Association is one of Canada's oldest voluntary, not-for-profit health-promotion organizations. The Lung Association is concerned with the prevention and control of asthma, chronic lung disease caused by smoking and with air quality and its effect on lung health. The Ontario Lung Association was incorporated in 1945, and has community offices across the province. Visit the Ontario Lung Association online at www.on.lung.ca for more information.
For more information on The Lung Association’s youth advocacy programs, visit www.youthadvocacy.ca.
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