That's more than one every hour.

During a typical eight-hour working day, at least eight people will face an early grave because of their habit.

As many as 22 years of life are being missed by men and women killed in middle age by their cigarette addiction.

And the Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board area tops the table of shame, with the highest number of deaths from smoking in Scotland relative to population – a shocking 29%.

Lanarkshire is in second place, with one-quarter of all deaths due to smoking, as well as the highest smoking prevalence in the country. Three out of 10 people there have the habit.

Between 2000 and 2004, nearly 28,000 people across Glasgow and Clyde and Lanarkshire were killed by smoking – that's more than the population of a small town like Kirkintilloch, in East Dunbartonshire. To put that in perspective, 13,000 people in Scotland died from smoking in 2008, compared with 1400 people killed by alcohol and 574 from drugs-related deaths.

It's not just smokers harming themselves. There are the effects on children and unborn babies who have no choice about being exposed to the harmful chemicals in cigarettes.

Coupled with the spiralling financial cost, it's a habit we want to help west of Scotland smokers break.There's a better life out there by being smoke-free and we want to help you find it.

As part of our record-breaking Glas-goals campaign we helped stub out 15 million cigarettes, but we want to go further. We'll be telling you the cold hard truth about your habit and meeting some of the people whose lives have been devastated by smoking.

But we'll also show you the success stories, meet some of the thousands who have given up, and show you why it's worth it.

Evening Times Editor Tony Carlin, said: "Too many people in the west of Scotland have their lives cut tragically short or seriously damaged as a result of smoking.

"This campaign aims to raise awareness of the issues and to persuade more people to stub out and, in the process, improve their lives as welll as the lives of their families, friends and colleagues.

"If you smoke you smell bad, you're sending your hard-earned cash up in a puff of smoke, you're anti-social and you're a health risk not only to yourself but to your partner, children and friends.

"Help is out there, so just ask."

Last year the Scottish Government's aim was to reduce the percentage of adults in the country who smoked to 22% – but it failed as a total of 24% of people continue to light up.

Shockingly, in some parts of Glasgow, more than half of the population smoke, and Lanarkshire is not far behind.

And there are strong links with deprivation – you're almost five times more likely to smoke if you live in north Barlanark and Easterhouse south where smoking levels are at 53%, compared with Newton Mearns, where only 12% of the population smokes.

Roystonhill, Blochairn and Provanmill in the east end, Drumchapel in the west, Ibrox in the south-west, Port Glasgow, Ferguslie in Paisley and Dalmuir in Clydebank, as well as Viewpark and High Blantyre in Lanarkshire, are also smoking hotspots.

Adults most likely to be smokers are those unable to work due to illness, or unemployed people.

Lung cancer goes hand-in-hand with smoking and is one of Scotland's biggest killers, claiming the lives of 4055 people last year, with 90% of cases caused by smoking.

Breathing condition chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), acute myeloid leukemia, as well as a string of other cancers are also linked to smoking. And for every person who dies, figures from the US estimate another 20 suffer from illnesses caused by smoking such as emphysema.

Dr Linda de Caestecker, director of public health for NHS GGC, said: "Smoking remains the biggest single preventable cause of premature death in Scotland. The effects of smoking on the population of the west of Scotland are particularly acute, contributing significantly to very high levels of cancers, heart attacks, strokes and debilitating breathing disorders.

"Despite an encouraging reduction in the number of smokers as a result of health education, legislation and intense smoking-cessation activity, there remains a huge health prize to be won for our population.

"I give my full support to the Evening Times Clear The Air campaign.

"We are already confident of a positive impact following the success of the newspapers Glas-goals campaign last year which saw a record uptake of smoking cessation services in the city and beyond."

Harpreet Kohli, NHS Lanarkshire's director for public health, said: "As a nation we've taken great strides to reduce the numbers of people who smoke.

"NHS Lanarkshire exceeded our smoking cessation target for 2008/11.

"However, we realise there's more to do, which is why we're delighted to link up with our partners in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to back the Evening Times smoking awareness campaign.

"Stopping smoking, at any age –regardless of how long you have smoked –is the best thing you can do to improve your health, the health of your family, the community and the nation as a whole."

SMOKING is Scotland's biggest preventable killer, prematurely ending the lives of more than 13,000 people a year and causing one quarter of all deaths.

A total of 417,000 adults in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde and Lanarkshire Health Board areas smoke – that's almost one-third of the population.

Today the Evening Times, with our partners, Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board and Lanarkshire Health Board, launches our Clear The Air campaign to show you why you need to give up now – and help you stub out the habit for good.