SMOKERS in Cheltenham were told to stub out the habit in no uncertain terms at a special event yesterday.

A quit smoking bus set up in the Promenade, giving passers-by the chance to have their lungs tested.

Part of national No Smoking Day, the mobile unit was manned by NHS staff offering advice on how to quit.

And by blowing into a machine patients were able to find out how many years smoking had added to their lungs, as well as the level of carbon monoxide in their bodies.

Alice Spurrier, 29, from Cheltenham town centre, has smoked 20-a-day since the age of 11 and claims she is desperate to give up.

"I've tried several times to stop but I haven't quite managed it," she said.

"Coming to have my lungs tested really brought home how harmful smoking can be. The results showed my levels of carbon monoxide are above average.

"I've got a three-year-old son and I want to give up for him. Today has definitely given me extra motivation to stop for good."

NHS staff say an average middle-aged smoker has a lung age 10 years older than they should because of their habit.

One youth, who has been smoking heavily for the past five years, was shocked to find out he had the lungs of a 64-year-old.

Andy Foster, 28, from Gloucester, said the carbon monoxide levels in his breath had dropped significantly since he quit smoking.

"I took the test before when I was still smoking and my carbon monoxide levels were very high," he said.

"Now I've given up I feel so much healthier and it showed in the results."

The appearance of the quit smoking bus comes as part of a hard-hitting NHS campaign to encourage smokers to quit across the county.

Staff at NHS Gloucestershire dropped postcards through the letter boxes of 30,000 households, with an image of a boy painting a wall with a cigarette behind his ear.

The caption says: "He wants to be just like Daddy" - highlighting the fact that children whose parents smoke are three times more likely to start.

Kirsty Hulme-Jones, a smoke free coordinator, said: "The day went extremely well. Dozens of people stopped by to get themselves tested.

"Everyone who stepped onto the bus had some kind of urge to quit. Hopefully they will now have extra motivation to do so.

"It wasn't an attempt to scare people - just to give them an idea of the kind of damage smoking causes.

"Deciding whether to smoke or not to smoke is the single most important choice people have to make concerning their health."

No Smoking Day also saw carbon monoxide readings handed out by community health workers at Noah's Ark Children's Centre in Tewkesbury and at Love lane industrial estate in Cirencester.