The images are not pretty, but new photos can now be seen on cigarette packages in stores across the country. The thirteen new pictures began their first round of rollouts on Aug 1 and include graphic depictions of things like colon cancer, a person after open heart surgery, a stroke and the effects of second-hand smoke on babies. Candice Paul of Membertou First Nation in Cape Breton smoked for more than 20 years before she quit in 2016. CTV Atlantic showed her the new photos on Tuesday and asked what she would have thought of them years ago during the height of her habit. “I still would have agreed with them,” Paul said. “Even when I was smoking a pack-and-a-half a day, I didn’t like the way it smelled. I didn’t like the way it tasted. I didn’t like the way it made me feel but I was addicted, so I kept doing it.” Not surprisingly, the Canadian Cancer Society gives a thumbs up to the new round of health warnings. “A picture says a thousand words,” said Rob Cunningham of the Canadian Cancer Society. “That’s why these images that are so vivid, memorable, impactful are important as a strategy.” When asked whether the photos may be considered too graphic or fearmongering by some, Cunningham said the results from similar photos over the past 25 years speak for themselves. “There are now 140 countries in the world that have implemented these picture-based health warnings following the Canadian example in 2001,” he said. “If they weren’t effective, we wouldn’t be seeing so many countries worldwide doing this.” Cunningham added that smoking rates have fallen from 26 per cent nationwide a quarter century ago to 11 per cent today. However, numbers remain a bit higher in Atlantic Canada. Also, six new messages appear on cigarettes themselves. “The warnings on individual cigarettes take warnings to a new level,” said Cunningham. “It may be that a kid who is experimenting will obtain a cigarette from a friend, may not see the package but they’ll see that warning on a cigarette.” Paul has enjoyed a more active lifestyle – and has even run marathons - since quitting smoking and figures the new labels might help some others make a similar change. “If it can get one person to stop smoking or one person to not start, I think it’s worth it,” said Paul. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
