HAIRDRESSING salons and supermarkets in the region are to become the new front line in the war against unhealthy living.

Thousands of copies of a new NHS glossy magazine called Your Life! are being distributed in places where women might pick them up and read advice on healthy living.

Unusually, the free quarterly magazine features exclusive celebrity interviews with stars such as actresses Martine McCutcheon and Angela Griffiths, singer Ms Dynamite and former boxer Chris Eubank.

Health bosses said they particularly wanted to reach young women who may have ignored or thrown away more traditional NHS leaflets in the past.

The magazine will also be found in traditional places such as GP surgeries, chemists, opticians, pharmacies, hospitals, council offices and leisure centres.

Not every area in the North-East is taking part in the scheme at this stage. Darlington is the only Durham primary care trust to join in.

Elsewhere in the region, trusts in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland have joined forces to produce and distribute the magazine.

Hambleton and Richmondshire Primary Care Trust has also brought out a version tailored to North Yorkshire readers.

Andrea Jones, communications manager with Darlington Primary Care Trust, said: "Apart from the celebrity interviews which appear in every issue, we have eight pages of local content.

"The magazine has information about mental health, smoking cessation, alcohol and drugs, sexual health and domestic violence services, and how people can access them."

Case studies featuring local people's experiences of NHS services are also part of the publication.

The Department of Health will assess the magazine's impact over the next few months and, if successful, Your Life! could be a regular way for the local NHS to get key health messages across.

Dr Stephen Singleton, the medical director for the Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Strategic Health Authority said Your Life! will help local primary care organisations provide people with important information.

He said: "The magazine looks and feels like many of the best-selling weekly magazines that women regularly buy, but the key messages are more tailored towards health."