One in ten smokers have tried falling sick by chain-smoking through their last pack of cigarettes in a bid to kick the habit, according to a new poll.

And 35 percent have kept away from friends and family who smoke.

The data, collected from 6,200 current and former smokers by Pfizer as part of its Don`t Go Cold Turkey campaign, found that a quarter of smokers have avoided drinking any alcohol whilst trying to quit, the Daily Star reported.
On average, smokers said they tried to kick the habit at least four times.

London based GP Dr Sarah Jarvis said many smokers are desperate to quit and will make big sacrifices or take drastic action to try and help them succeed.

But he rued that the vast majority are not taking advantage of the free help available to them from their healthcare professional, which has been shown to significantly increase the chances of success.