Kym Marsh says making the "hardest" health decision of her life was also one of the best things she's ever done - and is encouraging others to do the same. The former star has opened up about her experience with smoking as part of a new campaign she's participating in.

The former Coronation Street star explained the benefits she's seen from quitting smoking after "dipping in and out" of the habit for decades. In an video uploaded today (March 12), she said: "Ad - Quitting smoking was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but it’s also one of the best decisions I’ve made for myself.

"The turning point for me was my family – I want to be around for as long as I can for both my children and grandchildren. That’s what keeps me motivated every single day. Stopping smoking made such a difference to my life – I just felt so much better for it."

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The actress and TV presenter started smoking in her late teens and smoked on and off for 25 years but kicked the habit a few years ago. Now, she hopes her story can help encourage the nation’s six million smokers to quit like she did.

In the full video, she said: "The final turning point was my grandchildren really, and obviously my kids. I think it was becoming a grandparent, and realising I’m still fairly young to be a grandparent and I’ve got the opportunity of doing some really amazing, adventurous things with them and I don’t want to cut that short.

"I knew that I shouldn’t be smoking, because my dad had a massive cardiac arrest when he was 49, and thankfully recovered and we got him for many more years, but that was all down to the fact that he was a very, very heavy smoker.

"And I just thought 'Come on Kym, this should be the time when you look at your life and go, actually, I want to be around'. I’m not going to let something like what happened to my dad take me away from my grandchildren and my kids."

Describing herself then as a “social smoker”, she said the challenge of walking away from such a damaging habit was not easy. She added: "For me, it was about trying to break that cycle of weekends and being out with my friends, choosing places that we went to that made it more difficult for smoking to be accessible, or being with people who didn’t smoke.

"I just tried to remove myself from those situations as much as possible." She added: "Eventually, I got to the point where I felt that I didn’t miss it any more."

Many people in the comment section rushed to support Kym for bravely sharing her story. One said: "Such a courageous thing to do especially being in television, well done." A second said: "Well done! You’ve already achieved a lot and this is arguably the best achievement yet."

A third put: "I agree. Best thing I ever did! 13yrs now for me." Another added: "Quit over 20 years ago best thing I did." Someone else agreed: "I smoked for about 5 years and giving up was one of the best things I have ever done."

. Now, consider smoking several a day, and that soon goes from minutes to years.

The NHS says it's never too late to quit - even if you've been smoking for years. The earlier you quit smoking, the more you're likely to benefit. The Better Health page of the NHS website claims: "The day you stop, your body starts clearing itself of all those nasty toxins, and the repair process begins."

It says that some people will notice benefits within just a few days or weeks, such as improved senses of taste and smell, more energy, and easier breathing. These benefits keep coming as you rid your body of this harmful habit. After a year, your risk of heart attacks is halved compared to a smoker, and if you maintain a smoke-free life for a decade, your risk of death by cancer falls, too.

. There's also a free app to keep you motivated and on track as you quit.