28 December 2023 , 00:01
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Ex-England goalkeeper David James has spoken out about taking up smoking after growing up seeing his mum light up.
The former Liverpool player spearheads a hard-hitting NHS video campaign about the influence parents who smoke have on their children. New research by Imperial College London reveals that teenagers are three times more likely to smoke if parents, caregivers or close friends do.
James said: “When I was a child it was common for my mum to smoke at the dinner table. Smoking was part of life. Even though I was anti-smoking, one cigarette got me addicted for 15 years.
“My mum smoked, my friends smoked, it was around me. It didn’t take long for me to be hooked. Looking back, it had a huge impact on my health and performance at the time, I wish I never started.
He added: “Smoking had a massive impact on my performance. I couldn’t run two laps of an athletics track.”
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Some 5.3 million Brits still smoke and research shows the younger people start, the harder it is to quit. David, a father-of-four, said: “I smoked for about 15 years, and at the time it was normal.
“My children did smoke. It’s not surprising because they saw their father smoke. The good thing is they also saw their father give up cigarettes so now they are ex-smokers. I think as a role model for my children I had to give up smoking.
"I can’t ask them to do one thing with me conducting myself in a different way. My advice to anyone who is smoking and especially those who might have children in the household is; I am proof that you can quit. And my children, they’re proud of me. What more do you want?”
Research shows two out of three people who continue to smoke will die from a smoking-related disease, such as COPD or lung cancer. Public health minister Andrea Leadsom said “no other consumer product kills up to two-thirds of its users”.
The new campaign is urging smokers to ditch the habit in a bid to deter the next generation from taking it up. Chief Medical Officer for England Professor Sir Chris Whitty said: “Smoking causes many serious diseases that affect people throughout their lives.
“Stopping people becoming addicted to smoking, and helping those who have been addicted to quit are two of the most important measures we can take to improve health. Quitting will improve your health whatever your age and no matter how long you have smoked. It’s never too late to stop.”