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*Are you one of the many people who have made that on-going New Year’s Resolution to stop smoking cigarettes? Have you already found yourself “backsliding”, and sneaking a smoke or two?
Well. Here is some information that might serve as the support that you need…
Do you know that smoking causes 25 diseases and 11 Cancers? There are over 4000 types of chemicals in each cigarette. 400 of them are poisonous and at least 50 of them cause cancer.
Some of these chemicals include:
• Nicotine causes addiction
• Carbon Monoxide a dangerous gas found in car exhaust smoke
• Tar used to cover surface of roads
• Acetone paint stripper
• DDT a pesticide which kills mosquitoes and ants
• Arsenic white ant poison
• Formaldehyde used to embalm dead bodies
• Ammonia active ingredient in floor cleaners
• Hydrogen Cyanide poison used in gas chambers
Not many people know that nicotine in cigarettes is as addictive as heroin and cocaine.
Smoking can kill you in many ways:
Heart disease and stroke - Smoking causes fatty deposits to build up in the blood vessels, leaving them narrow or blocked. This leads to heart disease or stroke. About 40% of deaths due to heart disease before the age of 65 are related to smoking.
Cancer - Cigarette smoke contains more than 50 cancer-causing substances. Smoking is the most common, preventable cause of lung cancer. Smokers are 22 times more likely to develop lung cancer. 90% of all lung cancer cases in Singaporean males occur among smokers.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) - Doctors group chronic bronchitis and emphysema together under the label of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) because both cause respiratory symptoms and share a common cause — smoking. Smoking narrows the airways and destroys the air sacs in the lungs. This makes breathing difficult. Smoking is the most common cause of COPD, which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
Skin - It is well established that smoking reduces the skin's ability to regenerate, slowing the rate at which wounds heal and increasing the chances of scarring. Another consequence of smoking is that it upsets the process the body uses to restore skin by reducing the amount of the protein collagen present in the skin. Collagen produces new, healthy skin and is the connective tissue that constitutes about 80% of normal skin. When someone smokes, they effectively diminish the amount of nutrients stored in the skin, meaning that less collagen is available to repair damage.
Keep in mind that as soon as you snuff out that last cigarette:
Within 20 min:
Blood pressure, body temperature, and pulse rate will drop to normal.
Within 8 hours:
Smoker's breath disappears. Carbon monoxide level in blood drops and oxygen level rises to normal.
Within 24 hours:
Chance of a heart attack decreases.
Within 48 hours:
Nerve endings start to regroup. Ability to taste and smell improves.
Within 3 days:
Breathing is easier.
Within 2 to 3 months:
Circulation improves. Walking becomes easier. Lung capacity increases up to 30%
Within 1 to 9 months:
Sinus congestion and shortness of breath decrease. Cilia that sweep debris from you lungs grow back. Energy increases.
Within 1 year:
Excess risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a person who smokes.
Within 2 years:
Heart attack risk drops to near-normal.
Within 5 years:
Lung cancer death rate for the average former pack-a-day smoker decreases by almost half. Stroke risk is reduced. Risk of mouth, throat, and esophageal cancer is half that of a smoker.
Within 10 years:
Lung cancer death rate is similar to that of a person who does not smoke. The precancerous cells are replaced.
Within 15 years:
Risk of coronary heart disease is the same as a person who has never smoked.
Heart Disease and Stroke
Smoking causes fatty deposits to build up in the blood vessels, leaving them narrow or blocked. This leads to heart disease or stroke. About 40% of deaths due to heart disease before the age of 65 are related to smoking.
Men
• Smokers are 50% more likely to suffer from impotence or erectile dysfunction.
• Smoking reduces the volume of ejaculation, lowers sperm count, distorts sperm shape and impairs sperm mobility.
Women
• Women who smoke may experience early menopause and more menopausal symptoms.
• Smoking may lead to decreased egg counts due to destruction of eggs in the ovaries before the eggs reach maturity.
Children
• Children are especially vulnerable to the effects of passive smoking. This is because they breathe faster than adults and inhale more air and pollutants relative to their body weight.
Children of smokers are twice more likely to develop respiratory infections, middle ear infections, asthma and chronic bronchitis than children of non-smokers. Children of smokers are also twice as likely to start smoking themselves compared to children of non-smokers. Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm delivery, and low birth weight. The smoke inhaled (either directly from a cigarette or from second-hand smoke) by a pregnant woman goes directly to her baby's lungs. It prevents as much as 25 % of oxygen from reaching the placenta.
I am convinced that people WANT to beat this addictive habit that is ruining their health. If you or someone you love has a strong desire to stop smoking and quit the tobacco habit, then this column was written especially for you!
Please be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice.
Remember, I’m not a doctor. I just sound like one.
Take good care of yourself and live the best life possible!
Glenn Ellis, author of Which Doctor?, is a health columnist and radio commentator who lectures, and is an active media contributor nationally and internationally on health related topics
For more good health information, visit: www.glennellis.com