Smokers meet face of the future

Wrinkled, leathery skin, stained teeth, greasy hair, bad breath.

The health effects of smoking are more than skin deep, but as the Cancer Society's health promoter, Corinne Payne, says, the superficial aspects of smoking are hardly a recipe for being attractive and confident.

With that in mind, several Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology hairdressing students, some of them smokers, lined up for the smoke-over makeover on Thursday. It was designed to show them how they might look in a few years' time if they continued to smoke.

"The majority of new smokers are young women. It can affect their fertility, plus give them premature skin ageing," said Mrs Payne. "It's an important part of their sexuality to feel confident in the way they look. This might give them an opportunity to consider quitting."

Hairdressing student Jackie Michie said she volunteered for the smoke-over thinking it might help her quit cigarettes for the health of her child.

"I've tried quitting for my son's sake," she said, adding that she was influenced to start smoking from the age of seven years.

The Cancer Society, the Asthma Foundation's Karen Vis and NMIT hairdressing tutor Shelley McCormick organised the lunchtime anti-smoking campaign with help from local theatrical makeup artist Gileen Caughey. She said she hoped the students would react to the ageing makeup in the same way as the people she aged in productions like The Grinch and Cats. "They said they just couldn't believe [the difference]. Hopefully this will make them [the students] think about it and not wait until they're older and think, I wish I knew."

NMIT business administration student Jonathan Barlow said he gave up smoking 10 months ago. His wife, though not a smoker, died after having cancer of the tongue and he was left to raise their young daughter.

A chilling impetus for him to give up smoking was during his wife's hospitalisation in Wellington. He saw a patient who had just had his lung removed walk past attached to a draining bag that had smoke inside it. The patient had just gone outside for another smoke.

Meanwhile, on Friday, a group of Marlborough primary, intermediate and college students walked through the centre of Blenheim to mark World Smoke Free day, which was yesterday.

- © Fairfax NZ News