Two key considerations for smokers are the health effects of smoking and the cost of maintaining the habit. To a non-smoker there are a number of other negative factors to smoking which are often found to be annoying and anti-social.

Bad Breath.

The residual smell on a smoker’s breath can be very uncomfortable for the rest of the population, especially at close quarters. When a family member or colleague goes out for a cigarette and return to breathe in the vicinity of others it can be quite disturbing. Breath fresheners or mint can help to disguise the smell, however keeping a reasonable distance from other people would be more socially acceptable.

Passive Smoke

When a person smoking a cigarette is sitting or standing near to another person there is that constant stream of smoke which is often difficult to avoid, smokers tend to be oblivious to the discomfort they are inflicting on other people.

Litter

How many times in a day do you notice people flicking their cigarette butts onto the footpath or road rather than put them into a bin? It is almost as if the butts do not count as normal litter! It does count and smokers should be made aware of it.

Taking time out of work for a smoke

How do you feel when the smokers in your workplace take regular ten minute beaks to have a smoke? In many cases it is just an excuse for a break, non-smokers have to keep working until the next official break. Fortunately this is now changing in many modern workplaces.

Stale smoking smell in lifts and other confined areas

Walk into a lift car after someone who has recently had a smoke has just left it, and the smell is very uncomfortable. The smoker does not have to smoke in a confined area to make is smell, their breath alone can leave a stale aroma.

Smelly ashtrays and bins

We want to encourage smokers to use ashtrays and bins for their butts, the smell is just something we have to live with until there is a better solution.

Smelly clothes and cars

Cigarette smoke is unforgiving, if someone smokes in a car on a regular basis the stale smell will remain in the car regardless of what efforts are made to remove it. If you have been into a smoky bar you will probably have noticed that your clothes still smell when you return home. Hopefully smoky bars are becoming a thing of the past.

Coughing and clearing phlegm in public

Because of the congestion in the throat, smokers may have a need to cough to loosen the phlegm to make it more comfortable to breath. The sound is disturbing enough, but anticipating them getting rid of it in public is not at all pleasant!

Leaving a social group for a smoke

We can probably sympathize with the smoker who feels the need to leave their friends or colleagues to go for a smoke, it not only breaks up the group but the remaining members have to experience the smell of bad breath when the smoker returns.

Smoking in No Smoking areas.

Fortunately this has become socially unacceptable and smokers are usually ‘advised’ when they break this rule. Even having smoke drift from a smoking area is becoming frowned upon.

What other incentives could a smoker need to encourage them to quit?