15/12/2010
Researchers use shock tactics to encourage women to quit smoking
by Hannah McLaverty-Williamson
Researchers at the University of Staffordshire are using state of the art morphing technology in an effort to shock female smokers into quitting.
The technology can be used to produce images of what women smokers will look like as they get older, if they do not give up their habit.
The research, which was funded by Stoke on Trent Primary Care Trust, has been so successful that more than two thirds of the 47 women that participated have vowed to quit smoking as a direct consequence of seeing their face in the future.
The age progression software allowed researchers to take a picture of a woman's face and age the image to show the impact smoking will have on her looks if she does quit and if she doesn't.
The research team are planning to re-evaluate the participants in six months time to evaluate the success of the technique. However, initial stop smoking hypnotherapy can help people to keep on top of kicking the habit, providing strong support to the challenging process of quitting.
Professor Sarah Grogan project leader, told Marie Claire: "We found that women were very concerned about the impact of ageing on their faces in general and particularly the additional impact of smoking on their skin."
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