Health Warnings Campaign

In March 2006, new legislation was introduced that required all tobacco products manufactured in or imported into Australia to have graphic health warnings on packages. Each pack must have a warning message covering 30 precent of the front and 90 percent of the back with the same graphic, a corresponding explanatory message, and the Quitline logo and phone number.

There are 14 health warnings that appear on cigarette packs. They are rotated in sets of seven (Set A and Set B) every 12 months. The rotation system is set out below:

• 1 March 2006 - 31 October 2006 - Set A only
• 1 November 2006 - end February 2007 - Set A to Set B transition
• 1 March 2007 - 31 October 2007 - Set B only
• 1 November 2007 - end February 2008 - Set B to Set A transition
• 1 March 2008 - 31 October 2008 - Set A only This rotation pattern will then continue for the duration of the Regulations.

Set A

• Smoking causes peripheral vascular disease
• Smoking causes emphysema
• Smoking causes mouth and throat cancer
• Smoking clogs your arteries
• Don’t let children breathe your smoke
• Smoking - a leading cause of death
• Quitting will improve your health

Set B

• Smoking harms unborn babies
• Smoking causes blindness
• Smoking causes lung cancer
• Smoking causes heart disease
• Smoking doubles your risk of stroke
• Smoking is addictive
• Tobacco smoke is toxic

Following the introduction of graphic health warnings on cigarette packs in 2006, the Cancer Institute NSW developed campaigns that focus on these images to create a lasting impression every time a smoker purchases a pack.

	Amputation The Amputation advertisement builds on the graphic health warning ‘smoking causes peripheral vascular disease”. It explains how toxic chemicals from smoking enter into a smoker’s blood stream and travel to all parts of a smoker’s body, resulting in gangrene.
	Mouth Cancer The Mouth Cancer advertisement builds on the graphic health warning “smoking causes mouth and throat cancer”.  It highlights the fact that smoking is a major cause of cancer affecting the mouth (oral cavity) and the throat (pharynx).
	Voice Within The Voice Within advertisement builds on the graphic health warning “smoking doubles your risk of stroke”. It focuses on life after a stroke caused by smoking. It demonstrates that smoking doesn’t always kill but can result in reduced quality of life for a smoker and their family.
	Which Disease? The Which Disease? advertisement builds on multiple graphic health warnings. It focuses on the reality that you can’t choose which smoking-caused disease you will actually get if you continue smoking. It encourages smokers to reflect on their own smoking behaviour and challenges their beliefs regarding the likely health consequences of their smoking. All of these commercials remind smokers that quit smoking support is available through the NSW Quitline (13 7848).

Download Campaign Material

Before downloading any of our campaign material, please read the copyright notice.

• Download the 30-second Amputation television commercial [MPEG | 4.9MB]
• Download the 30-second Mouth Cancer television commercial [MPEG | 3.3MB]
• Download the 30-second Voice Within television commercial [MPEG | 3.3MB]
• Download the 30-second Which Disease? television commercial [MPEG | 4.1MB]
• Download mouth and throat cancer fact sheet [PDF | 114KB]
• Download Peripheral Arterial Disease Fact Sheet [PDF | 236KB]
• Print Ad: Warning: Disease you get may differ to one shown on pack [PDF | 105KB]
• Print Ad: Smokers, disease may only be a foot away [PDF | 78KB]
• Bus Ad: One Thing Leads to Another [PDF | 68KB]
• Poster: What You See Is What You Get [PDF | 155KB]