Watching someone die from lung cancer is extremely painful to see. I can not even begin to imagine how much more painful it is for the patient to endure.
Near the end, the patient loses weight very rapidly and struggles for each breath. The patient has a strange rattling sound coming from the chest, which is really creepy and scary to hear. The first time I heard it I was really freaked out, that feeling never goes away.
A Recreational Activity That Becomes An Addiction
For most smokers, the habit began as a recreational past time. It may have begun in school, college, work, or during military service. Some people probably started smoking at a young age, because of peer pressure or just to look cool. More often than not, the peer pressure and coolness influence factors go away, but smoking remains.
Smoking as a recreational activity, usually becomes an addiction. The brain and body crave a constant supply of nicotine. If the nicotine supply is diminished of cut off completely, the smoker may have physical or emotional distress.
Health Effects
The adverse health effects from smoking are well know and documented. Each cigarette damages or destroys some cells in your body.
Smoking effects every cell and organ in your body.
Really? Yes.
How?
Tobacco smoke is drawn into the lungs where capillaries (tiny blood vessels) absorb oxygen, smoke, and other components, such as toxins. The oxygen and toxins are distributed throughout the entire body, including the heart, brain, liver, kidneys, and so on. Some of the toxins may remain in body forever.
Hazardous Toxins
Tobacco smoke is full of hazardous and toxic chemicals. Over 4,000 chemicals have been identified in tobacco and tobacco smoke; 60 of these chemicals are carcinogenic (cancer causing). In total, these substances can damage your entire body
It's Expensive
It costs a lot of money to maintain the smoking habit. A pack of smokes costs about $6-8, more or less depending on where you live in the United States.
If you smoke one pack of cigarettes a day, it will cost you $2,190 - 2,920 per year. WOW!!! That's a lot of money! If you stop smoking, you can put that money in an IRA every year and accumulate a tidy sum.
Smoking not only costs a lot now, it will cost a lot of money in the future on medical expenses. Many of the current and future medical expenses are subsidized by the government, in effect by the taxpayers and also through excessively high medical insurance premiums.
An Addiction That Can Be Broken
"But, quitting is really hard to do!"
Yes, quitting is very hard to do!
Most smokers can not quit "cold turkey" (stopping immediately). It has nothing to do with will power. It is based on your physiology (body functions). Your brain has been trained and expects to receive nicotine throughout the day. If the nicotine supply stops, your brain goes into a type of shock, which affects your body and your entire being. You panic and get edgy until your brain is given a nicotine fix.
Most successful quitters gradually decrease their nicotine intake over a long period of time. The slow process will not shock the brain and it may prevent nicotine crashes and panic attacks.
A gradual decrease may not work for some people. There are many other methods available. Check with you physician for additional information about quitting plans and programs. Some people may need a support group to help them beat their nicotine addiction.
Be a Patriot, Stop Smoking
"How can I be a patriot by stop smoking?"
Look at it this way, since many medical expenses are subsidized by the American taxpayers, there is a strain on the economy. If all the smokers in the United States quit, or at least reduced their smoking addiction by 90%, the economic burden would be reduced significantly.
Not only will you be a patriot to help save the American economy, you will be saving yourself in the process.
"But, if I quit smoking, won't the tobacco industry suffer?"
The tobacco industry has plenty of customers in the world. Do not feel sorry for the industry. They do not care about you, rather only the money you spend on their products.
You, your family, and your country come first.
Quit smoking and breathe again.
Sources
- "Contents of Cigarette Smoke". bloodindex.com. Accessed 4 APR 2011.
- "What is in Tobacco?". American Cancer Society. cancer.org. Accessed 4 APR 2011.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for educational purposes only and should not be used for diagnosis or to guide treatment without the opinion of a health professional. Any reader who is concerned about his or her health should contact a doctor for advice.
Mike Brandolino - Mike is a Research Biologist and Environmental Professional. His writing topic interests are wide and varied.
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