
Quitting smoking
Aukati i te momi
Being smokefree is one of the best things you can do for your health.
You will immediately get benefits when you quit, as your body starts to repair itself. It does not matter how old you are. Quitting will help you live longer, improve the quality of your life and save you thousands of dollars a year.
No one says quitting is easy, but every day people show it can be done.
You can find much more information and help to quit smoking by contacting Te Hā – Waitaha Smokefree Support or Quitline.
Why it can be hard to quit
Many people find it difficult to stop smoking. To stop, you need to work through all the habits that go with smoking, and you have to withdraw from nicotine. Nicotine is the ingredient in tobacco that keeps you addicted.
But there are many things you can do and services you can use to help you kick the habit for good.
Self-help for quitting smoking
Getting help with quitting smoking
Getting help more than doubles your chances of successfully stopping smoking. There is a lot of free help available and there will be a service near you.
Your general practice team
Talking to your general practice team can be a good place to start when you decide to quit smoking. They can tell you about the support services that can help you. They can also talk to you about the different medicines you can use to help you give up.
Te Hā – Waitaha Smokefree Support
Phone 0800‑425‑700 for stop-smoking information and support.
Register online on the Te Hā – Waitaha Smokefree Support website.
- Free specialist smokefree support for all Cantabrians.
- Personalised plan with your own Quit Coach – you can choose individual or group support.
- Free NRT patches, gum and lozenges.
- Free consultation to access varenicline (Champix).
- Information, advice and support with other stop-smoking medications, such as bupropion (Zyban).
- Vaping as a quit tool.
- Pregnancy incentive programme where hapū māmā receive vouchers to reach smokefree milestones.
- Specific support for Māori and Pacific peoples and pregnant women who smoke.
Quitline
Phone Quitline on 0800-778-778 or register online.
- Quitline provides a range of services including phone, txt and online support.
On the next page: Medicines that help you quit
Written by HealthInfo clinical advisers. Last reviewed April 2025.
Sources
The information in this section comes from the following sources, some of which may be clinically complex or not available to the general public
Best Practice Advocacy Centre New Zealand (bpac) – Smoking prevention and cessation in adolescents: Changing futures, saving lives, retrieved March 2017
Health Promotion Agency – Health effects of second-hand smoke on children (https://www.hpa.org.nz/sites/default/files/SHSFactsChldHlthEff.pdf).
Ministry of Health – Health effects of smoking (https://www.health.govt.nz/your-health/healthy-living/addictions/smoking), retrieved March 2017
Smokefree – What is second-hand smoke?
Image and embedded video sources
Image of a baby with its hands in its mouth from Shutterstock (image ID 567841822). May 2021.
Image of a man using a mobile phone from FreeDigitalPhotos. April 2016.
Image of a man's arm with a nicotine patch from Shutterstock (image ID 540355300). March 2017.
Image of a person with a nicotine patch and a broken cigarette from Shutterstock (image ID 1940054128). July 2021.
Silhouette image of a father holding a child from MyChillyBin (image ID 102995_129). January 2016.
Tips and tricks for vaping to quit smoking video from Te Whatu Ora on YouTube.
Page reference: 45910
Review key: HIBSF-16604