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Addictions awareness
Send stories on smoking and health

Jeanne Gagnon
Northern News Services
Published Monday, November 14, 2011

NUNAVUT
Inspiring smokers to quit by hearing stories from others who kicked the habit is one of the goals of a new territorial anti-tobacco campaign.

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Ainiak Korgak, left, manager of external public health relations for the territorial government, and colleague Alana Kronstal, a tobacco reduction specialist, are looking for personal stories on how tobacco has affected someone. - Jeanne Gagnon/NNSL photo

People are more interested in how tobacco will affect the health of loved ones than cold facts, said Alana Kronstal, a tobacco reduction specialist in Nunavut. She is looking for people to share their stories on how tobacco has affected them and their families. Some of the stories will be featured in the Tobacco Has No Place Here campaign, to be officially launched during National Non-Smoking Week, Jan. 15-21.

"The campaign is looking at challenging the norm of smoking in Nunavut and putting a face to the issue, telling real stories about people who have been affected by tobacco and who have made the choice to live tobacco-free," she said.

No story is too small or inconsequential. She wants people to take a hard look at smoking in the North and wants people to be inspired by the stories shared.

"We're hoping the campaign challenges the norm of smoking, gets the conversation started about the impacts of smoking here in Nunavut, not just on the individual but on the family and on the community," she said. "We really want people to think seriously about not just the effects on themselves but on the future of Nunavut, on our young people and to see this as the really serious health issue that it is."

In Nunavut, more than half the population smokes. Statistics Canada data shows 54.4 per cent of territorial residents smoked in 2010, compared to 20.8 per cent nationally.

Ainiak Korgak, manager of external public health relations for the territorial government, said with the high smoking rates in Nunavut, anything that will get people talking is a plus. People should talk about the tobacco-related deaths and cancer rates as well as the consequences of adults buying tobacco for children, he said.

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