ANYONE wavering over whether they should give up smoking for the New Year is being given an extra push with a new hard-hitting campaign showing just how damaging the habit can be.

The Health Harms campaign by Public Health England has been launched following research showing smoking can have an impact far beyond the lungs.

Previous surveys have shown as many as two thirds of smokers want to give up but struggle due to the highly addictive qualities of nicotine.

The campaign is highlighting how the impact of smoking on the muscles and the skeleton can increase the risk of hip fractures among men by 40 per cent and the likelihood of any other type of fracture by 25 per cent while slowing down the dealing process.

It can also increase the risk of developing cataracts in later life by as much as 358 per cent while also boosting the risk of back pain and rheumatoid arthritis.

Smokers are also 59 per cent more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and are also at greater risk of dental problems.

The campaign, which will involve billboards and internet adverts showing a roll-up cigarette full of decaying tissue, is also tackling misconceptions around hand-rolled cigarettes.

Use of roll-ups has increased by 40 per cent among men and 23 per cent among women over the past 13 years and research has shown almost half wrongly believe they are less harmful than regular cigarettes. In reality they are at least as dangerous, and possibly more so depending on the amount of tobacco used.

England’s chief medical officer Professor Dame Sally Davies is backing the campaign and said she hoped more people would take action to kick the habit in 2015.

“Whilst many smokers know the damage cigarettes do to their hearts and lungs, they are much less likely to be aware of how harmful smoking is to the body, essentially rotting it from the inside out,” she said.

“Roll-ups are no exception.”

Although smoking rates in the West Midlands have fallen from 20.6 per cent in 2010 to 17.8 per cent in 2013, it is still the biggest cause of preventable illness and premature death in the country, accounting for almost 80,000 deaths in England every year.

Public health consultant with Public Health England Dr Lola Abudu said: “It is encouraging that we are continuing to see a decrease in people smoking across the West Midlands, but almost 18 per cent of people across the region are still putting themselves at an increased risk of smoking-related health conditions.

“Most smokers know the damage cigarettes do to their heart and lungs, however they are much less aware of how harmful smoking is to other parts of the body, including bones, muscles, brain, teeth and eyes,” she said.

National director for health and wellbeing at Public Health England Professor Kevin Fenton said, while damage caused by smoking may not become obvious until middle age, it can be caused as early as the late teens.

“The earlier a smoker quits the better, but quitting at any age can help reverse at least some of the damage,” he said.

“That’s why there is no time better than now to quit. Stop smoking and stop the rot.”

For help to stop smoking talk to your GP or call the NHS’ Smokefree service on 0800 022 4332.