VISION 2020 (UK) Limited:

Registered Charity Number 1146746

Press release

For Immediate release

Date:11/09/2014

Title: VISION 2020 UK supports Public Health England’s ‘Stoptober’ campaign

VISION 2020 UK, the umbrella charity bringing together organisations across the eye health and sight loss sector, are pleased to be once again supporting the ‘Stoptober’ initiative from Public Health England. Stoptoper encourages people to stop smoking for the month of October, with those who stop for 28 days being five times more likely to quit smoking for good.

There are many links between smoking and sight loss, and smoking doubles your chances of losing your sight.Research also suggests that smokers are up to four times more likely to get macular degeneration compared with non-smokers.The combination of smoking and genetics may account for as much as a third of all macular degeneration.

VISION 2020 UK member organisation The Macular Society are currently running a campaign, ‘Is it real’, whichhighlights to children aged 11-14 that smoking could eventually cost them their sight.

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Stoptober offer lots of free support tools and comedy content to help every step of the way. To get more information and support to quit please go to:

For more information, pleasecontact:

Jessica Brice VISION 2020 UKCommunications Officer 0207 874 1364

-ENDS-

Notes to editors:

  • Notes:

For more information on the links between smoking and sight loss, please visit:

Further details and campaign videos from the Macular Society’s ‘Is it real?’ initiative can be found at:

  • VISION 2020 UK is an umbrella organisation which facilitates greater collaboration between organisations within the UK, which focus on eye health and sight loss.
  • VISION 2020: The Right to Sight is an initiative led in partnership by the World Health Organization, and the International Agency for Prevention of Blindness, for the elimination of avoidable blindness.

VISION 2020 UK has 48 members which include the major eye health and sigh loss charities and professional organisation involved in eye health.

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VISION 2020 (UK) Limited

Chair: Nick Astbury ∙ Chief Executive Officer: Mercy Jeyasingham

Reg Company No. 7850769 ∙ Charity No. 1146746