No Smoke Day: Lancashire’s Coleen Nolan urges smokers to quit after health scare

The 58-year-old recently opened up about how she thought she was "going to die" when she was struggling to breathe as a result of an acute chest infection.

The incident, which happened in a hotel, led to Coleen being diagnosed with prediabetes, with it already being widely accepted that smoking increases the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

After the health scare the mum of three gave up cigarettes, announcing her “big-life changing news” back in December, and as of March, she has not smoked for more than three months.

Now the Loose Women presenter has joined forces with leading health charities Cancer Research UK, Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) and Asthma and Lung UK and the Government to urge smokers to quit on No Smoking Day (March 13).

Coleen, who rose to fame as a child singing with her sisters in The Nolans, said she was not aware of the health risks when she first started smoking.

She explained: "I smoked for about 40 years and was heavily influenced by my friends and family around me.

"At such a young age I wasn't aware of the health risks of smoking and soon found myself becoming addicted.

"Following a recent health scare, I realised how precious life is and became determined to quit, not just for my own health, but so I can be there fully for my children and grandchildren.

"To anyone out there thinking of giving up smoking, my advice is do it."

The new campaign, No Smoking Day, urges England's 5.3 million smokers to make a quit attempt through their local stop smoking services, which can be found through the Better Health NHS tool.

Professor Sir Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer, said: "Cigarettes kill. They cause at least 15 different types of cancers and increase your risk of developing more than 50 serious health conditions.

"Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health - no matter your age or how long you have smoked."

Public health minister Dame Andrea Leadsom said: "Cigarettes are responsible for 64,000 deaths a year in England - no other consumer product kills up to two-thirds of its users."

-For free support to stop smoking, just search "smokefree" online.