Kiss Me

Have you ever heard the saying that kissing a smoker can be almost like kissing an ashtray? Smoking leaves an unpleasant smell that lingers in the mouth and breath of smokers. Furthermore, the substances in tobacco smoke damages your teeth and gums. You may end up looking like just this.

If his teeth can look that bad,
just imagine how his lungs look like?

This is no joke. The true danger behind smoking is that it also increases the risk of mouth cancer involving the lips, tongue and nose. Mouth cancer makes up 2 to 4% of all cancers diagnosed in the U.S., with over 30,000 new cases reported each year.

Did you also know that,

• Smokers are more than six times more likely to die from different mouth-related cancers

• Using chewing tobacco increases the risks of mouth and throat cancers

• Mouth-related cancer causes symptoms such as

  • Difficulty in breathing, swallowing or speaking

  • Nosebleeds that can lead to significant loss of blood volume

  • Painful ringing in ear

  • Frequent headaches

• The cancer can spread rapidly to other parts of the body such as

  • Lungs

  • Bones

  • Brain

  • Liver

• The chance of recurrence even after early surgery is very high

At this point of time, there is still no complete cure for cancer. If you have mouth-related cancer, your prognosis is extremely poor, with only a 55% 5-year survival rate, a figure persistent for over 30 years.

About 8,000 Americans die from mouth cancers each year, while thousands of others put up with painful and expensive treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and long term medication which does little but delay their prognosis.

The best way to prevent mouth-related cancer is not to smoke at all. For smokers, that means to quit smoking. Just one simple action of kicking the habit can save you from the chronic pain and torment of mouth-related cancers.

Smoking Kills

Smoking kills more Americans than AIDS, drug abuse, car accidents and crime.

Did you know that 390,000 Americans die each year from cigarette smoking? Smoking tobacco causes 1 out of 6 deaths. Smoking can also cause some very serious diseases. Some people become addicted to smoking.

Lung cancer has caused more deaths in women than breast cancer. If a pregnant woman smokes, she has a greater chance of medical problems with her baby.

Cigarette smoking is the number one cause of cancer death in men. Male smokers over the age of 35 are more likely to die from smoking-related diseases like lung cancer.

Many children start smoking before they reach high school. They run the risk of smoking most of their lives. They could die of smoking-related diseases.

Junkie, burn-out, addict, drug abuser, drunk, alcoholic, smoke-a-holic

Some people would argue that smoke-a-holic is just a cute euphemism which should not be compared to what they consider degrading syndromes. Contrary to this belief, nicotine addiction can be equally as strong and deadly as any of these other conditions. In fact, if you total the number of people who die yearly of all these other conditions combined, they would not add up to the number of premature deaths attributed to cigarette smoking.

Until recent times, the idea of nicotine being a physiologically addictive substance was controversial in the world-wide medical community. For a drug to be considered addictive, it must meet certain criteria. First, it must be capable of inducing physical withdrawal upon cessation. Nicotine abstinence syndrome is a well documented, established fact.

Second, tolerance to the drug usually develops. Increasingly larger doses become necessary to achieve the same desired effects. Smokers experience this phenomenon as their cigarette consumption gradually increases from what probably was sporadic occasional use to a required daily consumption of one or more packs.

The third criterion is that an addictive substance becomes a totally consuming necessity to its user, usually resulting in what is considered by a society as anti-social behavior. Many have argued that cigarette smoking fails to fulfill this requirement. True, most smokers do not resort to deviant behaviors to maintain their dependency, but this is because most smokers do manage to easily obtain the full complement of cigarettes they need to satisfy the addiction. When smokers are deprived of easy accessibility to cigarettes, the situation is totally different.

During World War II, in concentration camps in Germany, prisoners were not given enough food to fulfill minimum caloric nutritional requirements. They were literally starving to death. A common practice among smoking prisoners was to trade away their scarce supplies of life sustaining food for cigarettes. Even today, in underdeveloped countries, such as Bangladesh, parents with starving children barter away essential food for cigarettes. This is not normal behavior.

During the "stop smoking clinics" I conduct, numerous participants admit to going through ashtrays, garbage cans and, if necessary, gutters looking for butts which may still have a salvageable value of a few puffs when their own supplies are depleted due to carelessness or unforeseen circumstances. To them, it is sick to think that they ever performed such a grotesque act, but many realize that if they were currently smoking and again caught in a similar predicament, they would be fully capable of repeating the repulsive incident.

Nicotine is a drug. It is addictive. And if you let it, it can be a killer. Consider this when you get the urge for a cigarette. One puff can and most often will reinforce the addiction. Don't take that chance. Remember - NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF!

"He Wanted You To Know"

Bryan Curtis started smoking at 13, never thinking that 20 years later it would kill him and leave a wife and children alone. In his last weeks, he set out with a message for young people.

ST. PETERSBURG -- Cigarette smoke hangs in the air in the room where Bryan Lee Curtis lies dying of lung cancer.

His head, bald from chemotherapy, lolls on a pillow. The bones of his cheeks and shoulders protrude under taut skin. His eyes are open, but he can no longer respond to his mother or his wife, Bobbie, who married him in a makeshift ceremony in this room three weeks ago after doctors said there was no hope.

In Bryan's emaciated hands, Bobbie has propped a photograph taken just two months ago. It shows a muscular and seemingly healthy Bryan holding his 2-year-old son, Bryan Jr. In the picture, he is 33. He turned 34 on May 10.

A pack of cigarettes and a lighter sit on a table near Bryan's bed in his mother's living room. Even though tobacco caused the cancer now eating through his lungs and liver, Bryan smoked until a week ago, when it became impossible.

Across the room, a 20-year-old nephew crushes out a cigarette in a large glass ashtray where the butt joins a dozen others. Bobbie Curtis says she'll try to stop after the funeral, but right now, it's just too difficult. Same for Bryan's mother, Louise Curtis.

"I just can't do it now," she says, although she hopes maybe she can after the funeral.

Bryan knew how hard it is to quit. But when he learned he would die because of his habit, he thought maybe he could persuade at least a few kids not to pick up that first cigarette. Maybe if they could see his sunken cheeks, how hard it was becoming to breathe, his shriveled body, it might scare them enough.

So a man whose life was otherwise unremarkable set out in the last few weeks of his life with a mission.

*****

Bryan started when he was just 13, building up to more than two packs a day. He talked about quitting from time to time, but never seriously tried.

Plenty of time for that, he figured. Older people got cancer. Not people in their 30s, not people who worked in construction, as a roofer, as a mechanic.

He had no health insurance. But he was more worried about his mother, 57, who had smoked since she was 25.

"He would say, "Mom, don't worry about me. Worry about yourself. I'm healthy,' " Louise Curtis remembers. "You think this would happen later, when you're 60 or 70 years old, not when you're his age."

He knew, only a few days after he went to the hospital on April 2 with severe abdominal pain, how wrong he had been. He had oat cell lung cancer that had spread to his liver. He probably had not had it long. Also called small cell lung cancer, it's an aggressive killer that usually claims the lives of its victims within a few months.

While it seems unusual to the Curtis family, Dr. Jeffrey Paonessa, Bryan's oncologist, said he is seeing more lung cancer in young adults.

"We've seen lung cancer earlier and earlier because people are starting to smoke earlier and earlier," Paonessa said. Chemotherapy sometimes slows the process, but had little effect in Bryan's case, he said.

Bryan also knew, a few days after the diagnosis, that he wanted somehow to try to save at least one kid from the same fate. He sat down and talked with Bryan Jr. and his 9-year-old daughter, Amber, who already had been caught once with a cigarette. But he wanted to do more. Somehow, he had to get his story out.

When he still had some strength to leave the house, kids would stare.

"They'd come up and look at him because he looked so strange," Louise Curtis said. "He'd look at them and say, "This is what happens to you when you smoke.'

"The kids would say, "Oh, man. I can't believe it,' " Louise Curtis said.

In the last few weeks, Bryan's mother has been the agent for his mission to accomplish some good with the tragedy. She has called newspapers and radio and television stations, seeking someone willing to tell her son's story, willing to help give him the one thing he wanted before he died. Bryan never got to tell his story to the public. He spoke for the last time an hour before a visit from a Times reporter and photographer.

"I'm too skinny. I can't fight anymore," he whispered to his mother at 9 a.m. June 3. He died that day at 11:56 a.m., just nine weeks after the diagnosis.

Bryan Lee Curtis Sr. was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery in St. Petersburg on June 8, a rare cloudy day that threatened rain.

At the funeral service at nearby Blount, Curry and Roel Funeral Home, Bryan's casket was open and 50 friends and relatives could see the devastating effects of the cancer.

Addiction is more powerful.

As the graveside ritual ended, a handful of relatives backed away from the gathering, pulled out packs of cigarettes and lit up.

Smoking Kills

Smoking kills. There's no two ways about it. The question is, what are you, as parents, doing to prevent your children from smoking. Today, on No Tobacco Day, let's take a look at the dangers of indulging in this habit.

Children are constantly subjected to peer pressure - from the time they begin school, till the time they leave college or maybe beyond, friends and acquaintances will yeild significant influence over their decisions - whch may sometimes cause them to take the wrong steps. The role of parenting is crucial as far as peer pressure is concerned, because if a parent instills self-esteem and confidence in a child, he would be able to say NO to his peers without any fear of ridicule. And today, on No Tobacco Day 2002, let's teach our children the harmful effects of tobacco, and to say NO to a friend offering a cigarette.

However, practice what you preach. Do you smoke? Perhaps it's time you quit. You say you only smoke 3-5 cigarettes a day… so that's an acceptable number. When you consider that there are those who smoke two packs a day, 5 cigarettes are fine - your body can handle it, right? Wrong. Dead wrong.

With every cigarette you smoke, you're causing damage to your health. So if you smoke a few cigarettes a day, you'll be causing less damage to your lungs than someone who smokes a pack or two a day, but you WILL be causing damage. And by watching you smoke, you children will also get the idea that it's okay to smoke. After all, daddy smokes and if daddy can do it, so can I. Some role model you turned out to be, huh? And if you stick to those 4 a day and feel your health is fine - when your kids start smoking they might not be so particular, and those 4 cigarettes a day could turn into 40. Scary, isn't it? If you're still having second thoughts about quitting, it always helps to make an informed decision rather than an ignorant one. So if you choose to smoke, make your choice an informed one. Here's the lowdown of the fag.

Every cigarette you smoke reduces your lifespan by 11 minutes. The earlier calculation estimated 5 minutes, but with the life-span of non-smokers increasing, this figure has grown to 11 minutes.

A non-cigarette smoker will live a healthier life, subject to fewer diseases.

Take a look at just some of the 4000 chemicals that are in a cigarette.

• Formaldehyde - used to preserve dead bodies
• Lead
• Mercury
• Benzene - used in dyes
• Cadmium - used to make batteries
• Nicotine - the chemical that gives you a 'hit' and makes cigarettes addictive
• Tar - transports other chemicals to your bloodstream, gets deposited in your lungs and stains your teeth.
• Acetone - used in nailpolish remover
• Carbon Monoxide - hardens the arteries and causes heart problems

By smoking, not only are you harming yourself, but you are harming others around you by producing secondhand smoke, which will be inhaled by those around you.

However, if you have been smoking for many years and suddenly quit, don't expect yourself you bounce back into the pink of health. That's not going to happen. The nicotine would have already caused substantial and possibly irreversable damage to your body and your lungs, so have realistic expectations. But this doesn't mean that quitting won't have any benefits at all. It's never to late to quit and no matter when you quit, your body will thank you for it. You will notice:

• An improvement in your sense of smell
• An imporvement in your sense of taste
• Your breath will smell cleaner and fresher
• Blood circulation will pick up
• Risk of contracting cancer and heart disease will improve
  

Cigarette Smoking and Emotions

Nicotine is one of the fastest-acting drugs known to man. When a smoker inhales tobacco smoke, the nicotine is absorbed into the bloodstream and the effects are felt almost immediately.

Conversely, levels of nicotine drop quickly to about one-quarter within one hour after finishing a cigarette; hence most smokers will think they need a cigarette every hour on average.

There are people who has smoked 40 cigarettes a day for over 50 years and lived to be 80. Indeed, people in this category rarely had a day's illness in his life. He would never have entertained the idea of becoming a non-smoker. Do not be fooled into thinking that you'll get away with this too. Such people are the exemption.

Excuses, Excuses...

When you are a smoker it is very easy to find excuses for why you smoke and to believe that it is the answer to all your problems. When you are unable to concentrate, you are convinced that you will be able to concentrate when you light up a cigarette.

When someone irritates you, you are convinced that you will feel more relaxed when you light up a cigarette. When first you become a non-smoker, everything that goes wrong is blamed on the fact that you are not smoking.

Your partner urges you to buy some cigarettes because you are irritable and no longer a pleasure to be with. Do any of these scenarios sound familiar?

The fact is, smoking never made anyone perfect. Even smokers get irritable, have trouble concentrating and are not always a pleasure to be with. You can't pin these or any other problems on the fact that you are a non-smoker.

You have not changed, your personal situations have probably not changed, you will still get cross, but it is very easy to blame these emotions on being a non-smoker because we are constantly bombarded with information about how smoking relaxes you and releases stress. We tell ourselves that it does seem to be a consensus of opinion so it must be right!

Smokers are always on a roller-coaster with their emotions, agitated when they cannot get a cigarette if they want one and at the same time agitated when they smoke. This is due, to a large extent, by the very nature of the habit and the frustration caused by being controlled by an outside force, something that feels beyond your control.

Cigarette Smoking Statistics

Yet most smokers continue to find excuses to put off the day they'll become non-smokers. Smokers also act under the illusion that the innumerable statistics written about the dangers of smoking are overstated. But if you truly do your research, you will find alarming statistics that should frighten anyone who smokes.

You might even think that these smoking statistics alone are enough to frighten anyone into either becoming a non-smoker or never to start smoking in the first place. Well, smokers do not want to know about the statistics until they decide to become non smokers.

If they really believed that cigarettes were going to kill them, give them cancer or be instrumental in the amputation of a leg, would they smoke another cigarette?

Don't Let Your Guard down Just because you’ve Stopped Smoking for a While

After you have successfully stopped smoking for a while, you may feel quitting has been easier than you expected. Not that it's been easy altogether, but it still has not been as hard as you feared. You may now go for several hours, maybe most of the day or evening, without even thinking about a cigarette.

Here's the downside of feeling too confident: You're at a party. You're feeling good. Maybe you've had a drink or two. Someone offers you a cigarette. You think, "I'm not having any trouble. I'll have a couple tonight and go back to non-smoking tomorrow. Maybe stay with
a routine of only smoking at parties."

One of the first times I quit, I decided I'd only smoke on weekends. Soon, I was trying to convince myself that the weekend begins on Wednesday evening and ends the following Wednesday morning!

Vigilance - that's the word for the next few months. You don't have to spend every waking moment managing your quitting, but you do have to stay on your toes, vigilant, alert to the temptations or situations that can mess up your plan. Give your nonsmoking the vigilance you would for anything else that is very important.

Source: http://www.stop-smoking-tips.com/articles/cigarette-smoking-emotions.html

hose Who Smoke Cigarettes the Most are Often Mentally ill

The rate of tobacco smoking is much higher among those with mental illness than among the general population, and those who are mentally ill also smoke more cigarettes and have more trouble quitting, according to a Washington Post editorial by Steven A. Schroeder, director of the Smoking Cessation Leadership Center.

In the United States, between 50 and 80 percent of all people with mental illness are smokers, whereas only 20 percent of the general population smokes. Those with mental illness also smoke more cigarettes per day than other smokers, and are more likely to smoke cigarettes all the way down to the filters. The combination of these two factors means that 44 percent of all cigarettes sold in the United States are sold to people who are mentally ill.

Those who are mentally ill also have more trouble quitting, succeeding at less than half the rate of the general population.

The high rate of tobacco use among the mentally ill is thought to contribute substantially to the lowered life expectancy among that population; people with mental illnesses die an average of 25 years sooner than the general population.

Among the general population, smokers die an average of 10 to 15 years earlier than non-smokers. Approximately 440,000 people die of smoking-induced causes in the United States every year.

According to Schroeder, part of the reason for the prevalence of smoking among the mentally ill is that mental health hospitals have a long tradition of using cigarettes as a way to control patients, proffering smoking breaks as rewards and withholding cigarettes as punishment. This trend is in the process of changing, however, and more than 50 percent of all mental health institutions in the United States are now entirely smoke-free.

In March 2003, 28 organizations came together to form the National Mental Health Partnership for Wellness and Smoking Cessation, of which the Smoking Cessation Leadership Center is a member.

India Joining the No Smoking Campaign. But Will it be Fruitful!

The anti smoking measures have been very effectively implemented in the developed countries. Though the smokers didn’t exactly welcome the anti smoking measures, yet they had no other choice but to kneel down before the higher and the more powerful authorities. Huge penalties were labeled for the law breachers and hence the smokers didn’t have much of a choice. They had to agree to the anti smoking measures, if not for themselves than for the non smoking community which is actually a minority in countries like the US and the UK. Nevertheless these efforts paid well as the rate of second hand smoking saw an encouraging drop.

In the underdeveloped countries a smoke free environment is not only a far fetched dream but it is actually a dream that not many people dream. People and the authorities feel that there are other important matters to look into and hence quit smoking can wait. It is actually a matter of debate because after all, the first responsibility of any government is to protect its citizens. Therefore, protecting people from the harmful effects of the smoke also come among the priorities of the government. However, for some inexplicable reason it seems that the governments of most of the third world countries doesn’t take smoking as an important enough issue that could command priority. The matters of defense and internal peace and equanimity have to be looked into first. Everything else can wait. This is one logic that cannot be negated altogether but it is time that the governments of these countries give equal attention to the matters of public health. Smoking is the most preventable cause of death in quite a few countries and definitely one of the most potent preventable causes of death in the whole world. It not only destroys human resources but an astronomic figure of wealth also. Hence it is time for all the governments of the world to take up the task of no smoking in all earnestness. Implementing bills to the affect of no smoking is not that a hard task. If the members in the government are like minded and wise enough, implementing smoking bans won’t be an issue. This is one anti smoking measure that doesn’t eat up much of national wealth and hence is advisable and appropriate for the third world countries or the poor countries in general. These countries have an overwhelming rate of smoking and the people here are also not aware of quit smoking ways like the anti smoke drugs. Chantix is a member of the quit smoking drugs. People have seen favorable effects by using chantix. The internet is the best place to know more about chantix and it is also the best place to buy chantix. Without much of a fuss and absolutely no waste of time and labor and sometimes even at a low price one can buy chantix online. The one thing that is common between buying chantix online and offline is the chantix prescription.

The majority of the smokers in the third world countries have no access to such sophisticated ways of quitting smoke. Hence bans are the most preferred. Recently in Delhi, the national capital of India, the police ordered every commercial outlet to display signboards of “no smoking” and on violating this rule penalties amounting to Rs 500 will be labeled on the violator. Though this is a very welcome step but the problem lies in the fact that in countries like India most of the laws remain in the paper only. The rules are almost never translated into reality. If this state of affairs continues, than I am afraid most of the anti smoking rules will also eventually ordain only the papers!

Smoking: Why the first puff can get you hooked

For many, the first fag is just for the sake of trying out smoking, but for some, this first puff turns out to be a life time of addiction. Scientists have now attributed this tendency to the brain's procession of 'rewarding' and addictive properties of nicotine.

In their new study, researchers at The University of Western Ontario have said that the mechanism behind the brain's processing of the 'rewarding' and addictive properties of nicotine, may explain why some people seemingly become hooked with their first smoke.

Led by Steven Laviolette of the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, the study could lead to new therapies to prevent nicotine dependence and to treat nicotine withdrawal when smokers try to quit.

"Nicotine interacts with a variety of neurochemical pathways within the brain to produce its rewarding and addictive effects. However, during the early phase of tobacco exposure, many individuals find nicotine highly unpleasant and aversive, whereas others may become rapidly dependent on nicotine and find it highly rewarding. We wanted to explore that difference," explained Laviolette.

The scientists particularly found one brain pathway that uses the neurotransmitter 'dopamine' to transmit signals related to nicotine's rewarding properties.

This pathway is called the 'mesolimbic' dopamine system and is involved in the addictive properties of many drugs of abuse, including cocaine, alcohol and nicotine.
"While much progress has been made in understanding how the brain processes the rewarding effects of nicotine after the dependence is established, very little is known about how the mesolimbic dopamine system may control the initial vulnerability to nicotine; that is, why do some individuals become quickly addicted to nicotine while others do not, and in some cases, even find nicotine to be highly aversive," said Laviolette.

The team then identified which specific dopamine receptor subtype controlled the brain's initial sensitivity to nicotine's rewarding and addictive properties and were able to manipulate these receptors to control whether the nicotine is processed as rewarding or aversive.

"Importantly, our findings may explain an individual's vulnerability to nicotine addiction, and may point to new pharmacological treatments for the prevention of it, and the treatment of nicotine withdrawal," said Laviolette.

The paper is published in the latest issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.

Children Smoking - Bad influence - Hope Its not ur kid one day!

Costlier cigarette causing smokers to smoke bidis

While the government is trying out various methods, including a hefty tax levy to make smokers give up smoking or cough up more, tobacco lovers are turning to cheaper options to 'puff away their blues'.

Trends indicate that smokers hit by the rising prices have shifted to so called down market options like bidis and Gutkas, as heavy tax slabs have failed to kill their urge to smoke resulting in an increase in total tobacco consumption.

"High rates of taxation on cigarettes are forcing consumers to shift to cheaper and alternate forms of tobacco consumption. As a result, overall tobacco consumption is increasing, as the price of other tobacco products is very low," says Udayan Lal, Director, Tobacco Institute of India (TII).

According to a report by the health ministry, India is home to 100 million bidi smokers and around 8 lakh people in the country die due to tobacco consumption annually with 6 lakh deaths caused by bidis alone.

"It's not that the government is unaware of the facts about the growing bidi industry. The highly labour intensive nature of the industry, which provides large-scale employment, gives it a powerful voice and that could be one of the reasons why tax rates are so low," says Lal.

"And also there is a highly decentralized system on manufacturing and distribution of bidis. There are thousands of bidis factories and no reliable data on their production or consumption," Lal adds.

Statistics by the ministry reveal that about 15 per cent of tobacco consumption in India is in the form of cigarettes while 53 per cent is smoked as bidis.

"Unlike the rest of the world, where, on an average, cigarettes account for as much as 90 per cent of the total tobacco consumed, in India cigarettes represent only 15 per cent of total tobacco consumption. The balance 85 per cent of tobacco consumption is in the form of traditional tobacco products like bidis, chewing "khaini", gutka, etc," says Lal.

Cigarettes contribute 85 per cent to the total excise revenues collected from the tobacco industry, amounting to Rs 8,500 crore, according to Tobacco Institute of India (TII).

Pointing out that the bidi consumption is very high in northern India, particularly in Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and UP, with the ratio of bidis to cigarettes sometimes being as high as 24:1, he says, "Bidis are more harmful than cigarettes because they go out more often than cigarettes and are filled with small amounts of low-grade tobacco."

Studies have also shown India's 4.4 million full-time bidi rollers the majority of whom are rural women and children who roll bidis by hand at home and are paid low wages were more likely to contract anaemia, asthma and TB than other non-smokers not involved in bidi production.

"It is an industry that is growing. More than 800 billion bidis are sold in India each year compared with 100 billion cigarettes sold annually. Easily available and comparatively cheap, the bidi is smoked predominantly by people on lower incomes," says Lal.

Adding that it is the high and discriminatory rates of taxation on cigarettes that are dictating the consumption pattern of tobacco products, Lal says, "Tax on bidis are currently just one-twelfth of the tax levied on non-filter micro cigarettes (purchased by the poor) and just 2 per cent of the tax on more expensive standard filters cigarettes. As a result bidis represent less than 6 per cent of India's total tobacco excise revenues."

Talking about the reforms needed to discourage the favoured status towards bidis, he says, "Tax on bidis should be levelled at par with other tobacco products by raising the excise duty. It would help in reducing the overall tobacco consumption as the average price of tobacco products increase and also generate more revenue for government."

The Path of A Successful Quitter

Have you ever heard of the saying, that the best way to succeed is to follow those who have succeeded? Smokers who have quit smoking successfully share common characteristics.

Here are the perfect characteristics and examples of a successful quitter.

• Successful quitters believe in themselves. They totally believe that they have the choice and ability to quit smoking for good.

• Successful quitters are completely motivated to quit smoking. They have made the decision to do whatever it takes to overcome the habit completely, without the option of turning back.

• Successful quitters refuse to go back on their decision to quit smoking. They throw away their lighters, ash tray and cigarettes and let everyone know that they are quitting smoking. They create for themselves the courage and spirit to quit smoking completely.

• Successful quitters are honest with themselves and refuse to make excuses that "justify" smoking. They accept the dangers and realities of smoking.

• Successful smokers fix a quit date and stick to it. Once they have fixed this date, they stop making excuses to prolong their smoking habit.

• Successful quitters accept full responsibility for their smoking habit. They no longer blame their parents, friends or tobacco companies anymore. They accept their faults are a determined to change them.

• Successful quitters admit that they may need help and support to quit smoking.

• Successful quitters plan their quitting process carefully. They write down their goals and quit dates and engrave these information into their minds.

• Successful quitters are persistent and determined to quit smoking, even it takes them several attempts before they finally quit for good.

• Successful quitters usually have quit friends to support them. These may be people helping them quit smoking or people who are quitting smoking at the same time.

• Successful quitters are determined to tolerate the initial discomfort of quitting smoking, knowing that they will be rewarded with a lifetime of freedom and better health.

• Successful quitters change their focus towards better health. They begin exercise programs and alter their diet.

• Successful quitters know the benefits of drinking water lots of water and discipline themselves to do so.

• Successful quitters are willing to try smoking cessation aids to help them ease the process of quitting smoking.

• Successful quitters help others quit smoking. They develop a sense of duty to share their achievement with others because they understand their plight. Unsuccessful people on the other hand are always asking, "What's in it for me?"

• Successful quitters reward themselves. They treat themselves for their achievement in as many ways as they can.

• Successful quitters never ever take another puff of cigarette, no matter what it takes or whatever situation they are in. They know that just one puff is harmful and can ruin everything they have done so far.

Remember, the best way to succeed in any quest is to follow the footsteps of someone who already has succeeded before you. If you do this right, you too can quit smoking just like any of them.

Smoking outside 'still harms kids'

SMOKING outside does not stop children being exposed to high levels of dangerous tobacco chemicals, Australian research shows.

A study of homes in Perth found higher levels of nicotine and other tobacco-related particles inside the houses of smokers compared to smoke-free homes, even if the smokers smoked outdoors.

Children in these homes had higher rates of respiratory illnesses like asthma, probably because the smokers were dispersing these particles when returning indoors.

The message, say researchers from Curtin University of Technology, is that parents must quit to make their home truly safe for children.

"If parents would like to provide a smoke-free home environment they have to stop smoking. It's as simple as that," said lead researcher Dr Krassi Rumchev.

"Because smoking outside just isn't providing the protection that many Australian smokers believe it does."

Australia's smoking rates have dropped significantly in the past decade, with only 17 per cent now smoking daily.

However, smoking rates were high in the study, with 42 per cent of 92 houses surveyed home to smokers. In almost all cases of houses with smokers, the smokers smoked outside.

Researchers measured levels of nicotine and respirable particles over 24 hours in the living rooms of all the homes.

Levels were low in homes without smokers and considerably higher in houses where smoking was reported.

Dr Rumchev said it appeared that when smokers returned indoors they were still breathing out smoke which contaminates the air enough to cause damage. Particles were also brought inside attached to their body and clothes.

"The little nicotine particles attach to the hair and body of the smoker and are then dispersed into the air at levels that can really cause problems," she said.

Respiratory illnesses were more prevalent in homes with smokers than smoke-free households, Dr Rumchev said.

Children exposed to higher air nicotine levels were three times more likely to have asthma or wheeze than those not exposed.

Air-conditioning or opening the windows did not adequately reduce environmental tobacco smoke, the research showed.

Dr Rumchev said a large-scale awareness campaign was needed to educate parents on these dangers.

Hooked on hookah? Some students unaware of harmful effects

Hookah smoking is no longer just an activity for the inquisitive caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland.

Researchers say college students are spending more of their time smoking hookahs instead of cigarettes, but many students are unaware of its harmful effects.

Crystal, a 22-year-old American University graduate student, says hookahs - or water pipes filled with tobacco - are more appealing than cigarettes. She explains why many college students are attracted to hookah smoking.

"At hookah bars you just sit down, chill out, and talk. It's a low key, laid back type setting."

Crystal says she smokes a hookah once every few months, but says she knows the effects are similar to smoking cigarettes.

"I think a lot of people think it's safer, but I don't think it's safer."

A new study from The Journal of Adolescent Health found a puff of hookah smoke is 100 times more dangerous than a puff of cigarette smoke. Of the 700 students surveyed in the study, 40 percent said they used a hookah last year.

Ritodhi Chakraborty, a 24-year-old graduate student at American University and a native of India, says the fruit-flavored tobacco makes hookahs appear less harmful.

"I think I got duped into it with the misconception that it was safer than cigarettes, and it's really not," Chakraborty says. "Everybody thinks it's not as harmful. People are like, 'This tastes like passion fruit, of course it's not as harmful.' It affects your lungs just as bad as a cigarette does."

Chakraborty says most people do not smoke a hookah properly, making it even more dangerous.

"When you are smoking hookah, you should feel like you are choking yourself," Chakraborty says. "I try to teach people how to smoke. You let the smoke come out through your nose. If you put it all into your body, you are just messing up your lungs."

Although Chakraborty knows the effects of smoking a hookah, he says he has no problem smoking them.

"It gives you the buzz, which otherwise you wouldn't get," Chakraborty says. "Who doesn't like blowing smoke out of their mouth? It's like to coolest thing to do."

Smoking Hazards - Please Quit Smoking to Make a Healthy Environment

Why Should stop Smoking?

There are so many reasons, but I would try to be short and sweet here.

1. To Increase your life Span,

2. Keep yourself fit and healthy

3. To save your Money

4. To save your time

5. To save your Family

6. To Save the environment.

And Many More.....

According to NHS:

Why it should be done. Giving up smoking increases your chances of living a longer and healthier life. It instantly reduces your risk of death or serious illness due to smoking-related diseases, such as lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and heart disease.

Health benefits from the moment you stop

When you stop smoking, the benefits to your health begin straight away. As your body starts to return to normal, you will start to feel healthier, and within a few weeks you will also start to notice the benefits. For example:

After one month - your skin will be clearer, brighter and more hydrated.

After 3-9 months - your breathing will have improved, and you will no longer have a cough or wheeze. Your lung function may have improved by up to 10%.

After one year - your risk of heart attack and heart disease will have fallen to about half that of a smoker.

After 10 years - your risk of lung cancer will have fallen by half.

After 15 years - your risk of heart attack and heart disease will be the same as someone who has never smoked.

Research into smoking shows that people who quit smoking before the age of 35 have a life expectancy only slightly less than people who have never smoked. Those who quit before they are 50 years of age reduce their risk of dying from a smoking-related disease by 50%.

As well as the immediate and long-term benefits to your health, there are many other good reasons to quit smoking, such as those outlined below.

No longer causing harm to others through passive smoking, particularly babies and children, who are at risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), asthma, and ear and chest infections.

It is less likely that your children will go on to smoke. Research shows that children living with parents who smoke are almost three times more likely to start smoking themselves.

Limiting harm to your unborn baby. Although smoking at any stage of pregnancy can harm your baby, most of the harmful effects of smoking occur in the second trimester (weeks 14-26) and third trimester (week 27-birth). Therefore, if a woman quits smoking during her first three months of pregnancy, she will have a similar risk of giving birth to a low weight baby as a non-smoker.

Final word, Please save yourself from this bad killer habbit and take few next steps towards quit smoking path.

Cheers,

-abasits

You can Quit Smoking Now. Check out quit-smoking procedures with their rankings based on points.

Smoking: Advice for Parents

Although parenting advice to kids and teems is difficult and many times ineffective, there are some tips in order to persuade them to stay away from tobacco. To increase the chances that your child does not start smoking, it is important that you begin to start sharing with your child the dangers of smoking as early as possible. Kindergarten is not too young to begin. It is often during this time that your child may be learning about basic safety in regards to drugs, strangers and fire. You speaking to them about smoking will fit right in.

It is believed that nearly 20% of adolescents smoke in the United States. This is an alarming figure and puts millions of adolescents, teens and their family¢s at risk for smoke related diseases. To curb this, it is important for parents to take an active role in their children¢s life. This means paying attention to them, spending time with them and being involved in their world. The Center of Disease Control believes that these simple acts will help your child overcome peer pressure and will enable them to say no to at-risk, dangerous behaviors. Speaking with children, no matter how old they are about the illnesses and dangers associated with smoking can help them to not ever start smoking. If your child has already started smoking, you should still remind them of the dangers, not allow it in your home and provide them with help and support when they express that they are ready to quit. If a family member or friend has suffered from some sort of smoke-related illness, be sure to discuss this with your children.

Having a child that smokes can be very distressing to a parent who understands the dangers of smoking. If your child is underage, do not allow them to smoke at all and especially not in your home or around you. Be sure to make sure that they understand the dangers of smoking, a field trip to the hospital to see patients that are hospitalized for smoke-related illnesses might be in order.

If your child is older and no longer lives in your home, you may not have as much control. However, you can forbid them from smoking in your home and when you are around. Also be sure to be supportive when they express an interest in giving up smoking.

Global Smoking Trends- Where Tobacco Companies Make Money These Days?

Smoking has become the affliction of a large magnitude of people and others seem to be joining the smoke bandwagon at an alarming rate. Smoking has become a very common sight with one out of every fifth person being a smoker. The trend of smoking has become very common among teenagers also. The problems one gets due to smoking are many, but they do not seem to encourage people to stop smoking or deter people for starting to smoke. The hazardous effects of smoking are many, but people do not seem to be paying heed; the tobacco companies seem to be the only one is reaping the rewards out of smoking.

Since tobacco was born, it has been a few companies dominate the tobacco industry. These companies control most of the production and distribution around the world. They are quick to adapt to their policies and tactics to conform to the regulations set by the government and cater to the needs of the ever-increasing number of smokers around the world.

Tobacco companies of the world
A few companies hold the tobacco production and control of tobacco; the three largest companies sell close to two thirds of the entire supply. The stagnation in demand has prompted them to explore new markets.

The government is in a predicament since the tobacco industry accounts for a vast amount of jobs, but it also has to protect the health of its citizens. The government has tried to cut down on smokers by increasing the taxes imposed on them. By increasing the taxes on tobacco products and leveling higher duties on the companies, the companies are forced to raise the prices, which indirectly reduce use; since higher priced goods will be used less often. There is not much the government can do since tobacco is not a banned product.

The large companies also diversify their business to keep abreast in the market. They use various ways the companies diversify.

By market segments: Products are usually divided into categories, from high priced premium cigarettes to low and middle class of cigarettes. Companies with big brand names sell premium high priced cigarettes but also expand in to lower class sales to protect them from susceptibility. A decline in sales of premium cigarettes will be ploughed back by the sales in the lower or middle brands of cigarettes.

By target group: Every cigarette has its target group. By creating a new target group, the company can raise its overall market share. Thus the need to branch out into women cigarettes and target young people.

This targeting of women and youngsters has been seen in bad light. The tobacco industry has long targeted young people with its advertising and promotional campaigns. One of the most memorable, “Joe Camel” campaign initiated by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, helped generate public outrage against tobacco company efforts to reach young audiences and it is no longer used. The reason is obvious, most people start smoking at an early age. Getting a hold on a new segment will increase its share in the market.

Women are also a segment that the industries try to win over. Cigarettes for women are put forward as a symbol of liberation and some even shown in the light of slimming products. Manufacturers produce (long, slim) cigarettes especially for women. Perfumed or scented cigarettes with exotic flavors are targeted at women. Cigarettes usually have the word “slim” or “lights” to attract women consumers. Minorities are also a target for the tobacco industry.

Diversification by tobacco products: cigarettes companies also try to branch out into other tobacco products. For example, Imperial tobacco has decided to branch out into the roll your own segment; it dominates both the tobacco and the paper for this segment.

Diversification by non-tobacco products: food seems to be the favorite for companies seeking to diversify. R.J. Reynolds bought Nabisco (which, in turn, was later acquired by Kraft) owned by Philip Morris. Japan Tobacco derives a (small) part of its sales from food. Logistics and wholesaling are another favorite Austria Tabak, wholesaling of tobacco and other products (and the operation of vending machines) makes up a large share of turnover. Over 20 per cent of Altadis’ earnings originate in its logistics division. Skandinavisk Tobakskompagni owns the largest wholesaler of consumer goods in Denmark. BAT tried financial services (but, since 1998, is a pure tobacco company).

Diversification into food and other activities makes the tobacco companies less dependent on (slow-growing) sales of tobacco products. However, the profit margins in these industry are usually well below those attained in tobacco processing. Producing and marketing cigarettes remain the more lucrative activity.

Incase of diversification by geographical market, OECD-based tobacco companies are keen to reduce their dependence on their stagnant home markets and establish a presence in markets where growth is above average. After having started business in many markets in Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, and the Central Asian republics in the 1990s, their center of attention is shifting to the Far East. All the major tobacco companies now have a presence in Poland, Russia and the Central Asian republics. Austria Tabak, which gained a presence in Estonia when it acquired the cigarette activities of Swedish Match also has a 67 per cent market share in Guinea. The company was considering entering Asian markets when it was taken over by Gallaher in June 2001. Through this take-over and the acquisition in 2000 of Liggett-Ducat, the Moscow cigarette maker, Gallaher greatly reduced its dependence on the UK market. Similarly, Japan Tobacco became a world player when it acquired the international activities of R.J. Reynolds. Thanks to a relentless internationalization drive, Germany’s Reemtsma now sells less than one-third of its total in its home market (compared to over 60 per cent in 1991) (see also figure 6). It is now on the go in several Central and Eastern European countries and, in 1999, it acquired Cambodia’s Paradise Tobacco Company.

The government.

A predicament is generally faced by the Governments all across the world. On the one hand, tobacco-growing and processing can makes a large contribution to employment, tax revenue and foreign exchange receipts. In many developing and formerly centrally planned economies, the tobacco companies have made sizeable and most welcome investments when other investors were disinclined to do so. On the other hand, governments have the responsibility to protect the population’s health. Smoking is harmful to health and treating people for smoking-related illnesses is expensive. This can lead to heated debates within the same government as each sector defends the interests it believes it should represent.

The economic importance of tobacco growing and processing differs from country to country. At the national level, cigarette (sales and import) tax can be a main source of government revenue. In Russia, cigarette tax revenue contributes around 8 per cent to the financing of the state budget.

When the government owns the industry, it receives profits in addition to tax. That is why, in so many countries, State monopolies continue to control cigarette trade and production. In China, proceeds from state-owned CNTC amounted to the equivalent of US$11,000 million in 1999. CNTC has been the Chinese State’s top revenue generator for years. Japan Tobacco earned more than US$400 million for the Japanese State in the fiscal year ending March 2000. The monopolies can also play a social function. In Italy, several of the state monopoly’s factories are to be found in areas of high unemployment.

Then there are balance of payments issues to mull over, many low-income countries rely on the export of cash crops such as tobacco to pay for the service of their foreign debt.

Tobacco exports made up close to 10 per cent of Cuba’s exports in 1997-98. In the case of Tanzania it was 15 per cent, In Zimbabwe over 25 per cent and in Malawi tobacco exports made up two-thirds of commodity exports.

Citizens smoke. But, if they smoke domestically produced cigarettes, using homegrown tobacco or use imported cigarettes and tobaccos can make a large difference when foreign exchange is scarce. That explains why so many countries try to restrict the imports of cigarettes and encourage domestic producers to use local tobaccos, for example, by providing a favorable tax treatment to companies that use a minimum percentage of homegrown tobaccos. The cigarette companies have also been a key source of investment in the formerly centrally planned countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and Central Asia. When others were disinclined to invest, those companies saw the possibilities offered by a blend of pent-up consumer demand, outdated production facilities and the association with independence and “western style” living that so appealed to the people in these countries after many years of central planning and little consumer choice. After having lobbied successfully for the reduction of restrictions of Asian markets such as Japan and the Republic of Korea, the large tobacco companies are eagerly waiting for the opening up of the other economies (notably China) that continue to restrict imports from and/or investments by foreign tobacco companies.

Tobacco growing, processing and exports can thus make a significant involvement to national employment and national income. Yet, however important tobacco growing and processing may be at the national level, its full economic and social significance is best grasped at the micro or regional level. In some regions, tobacco is grown side by side with the crop, which is the main source of income; its contribution to overall income is modest. However, in many others, tobacco is a main source of income and employment.

Tobacco growing and tobacco processing may bring substantial economic and social benefits, but the treatment of smoking-related illness is costly. Cigarette smoking causes cancer. It is addictive. The WHO estimates that tobacco products cause around 3 million deaths per year. Cigarette smoking is the major cause of preventable mortality in developed countries. In the mid-1990s, about 25 per cent of all male deaths in developed countries were due to smoking. Among men aged 35-69 years, more than one-third of all deaths were caused by smoking. The costs of treating all these people are clearly enormous (WHO, 1997).

So far, smoking has not had the same impact on mortality among women and among people from developing countries. There is an approximate 30-40 year time lag between the onset of persistent smoking and deaths from smoking. The effects of the greater incidence of smoking between these two groups will thus be felt with a lag, but it seems reasonable to believe that its impact on them will not differ fundamentally from that on developed country males.

It may be argued that smokers willingly take a certain health risk when enjoying their smoke. They like the taste and all the other things that they associate with smoking. Nevertheless, this does not apply to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) or “second-hand smoke”.

Smoke gets in your eyes your clothes. Moreover, it gets in your lungs. Non-smokers cannot escape from smoke in badly ventilated areas. To be exposed to other people’s tobacco smoke can be a nuisance in addition to being a health risk for non-smokers.
Governments and conflicting pressures: How do they get by?

In practice, governments have opted for several strategies (which are often followed simultaneously). A recent strategy consists of seeking compensation for the costs of treating smoking-related illnesses. It has been followed with success in the United States, as we saw in section 3.4. Governments also set rules regarding the maximum content of hazardous substances in cigarettes. Most of all, however, governments try to discourage demand for what is, as the industry does not tire of telling us, essentially a legal product.

This is done in a variety of ways, with some governments applying particular vigor and others taking a more relaxed approach. Overall, however, the trend is clear: governments’ rules on smoking are becoming ever more restrictive. The use of tobacco products is being discouraged in several ways.
Limitation of the space where smoking is allowed.

This is done above all to protect non-smokers from involuntary exposure to tobacco smoke. Smoking is being prohibited in public places (particularly health care and educational facilities) and in mass transport. Legislation requires restaurants to reserve space for non-smokers.

Limitation by age group
It is prohibited to sell tobacco products to people under a certain age.
Limitations on points of sale.

The use of vending machines is being restricted because these cannot discriminate against sales to young people.

Health warnings stating that tobacco is harmful to health have become obligatory.
The warnings must be placed on packets and in ads, with the authorities prescribing the text and the minimum space allotted to the warning in the ad or on the pack. Governments sponsor education and public information programs on smoking and health.
Advertising bans. Restrictions concern the location of ads, the media used (no billboards, no ads in the printed media or in cinemas), the images presented (no young people, no cigarette packets), and the time when broadcasting is allowed (not during hours when children watch television).

The manufacturers are unhappy with these restrictions, and in particular with the ban on advertising. In their view, it is not proved that such a ban discourages demand for cigarettes (as its proponents claim). They are concerned about its effect on the value of their prime asset, the brand name.

Worldwide, the tobacco-processing industry employs hundreds of thousands of people. However, due to a combination of slow demand growth, consolidation, and higher productivity, this number is unlikely to increase by much in the near future. Fewer people are needed per unit of production. The industry is becoming less intensive in the use of labor. Tobacco growing, in contrast, gives work to millions of people. It continues to be a highly labour-intensive activity. The scope for productivity increases in tobacco growing would appear to be more limited than those in tobacco processing.

Over a million people are employed in the world tobacco industry
However, of this number a high percentage is employed in just three countries: China, India and Indonesia. The large number employed in China comes as no surprise in view of the large number of cigarettes (one-third of the world total) produced there. Still, the productivity gap with the United States is striking. China produces roughly three times as many cigarettes as the US, but it needs over nine times as many people to produce them. In the other two countries, the scope for productivity improvements would appear to be even higher.

THE SCENARIO TODAY.
The situation concerning smoking are scary, if global trends continue as they are doing today by 2030 more than 8 million people will die each year from tobacco related causes-80% in the developing regions of the World. In India per example where 120 million smoke 1 in 5 men will die for smoking. Smoking is on the decline in developed nations but is on a large-scale rise in developing or underdeveloped nations. The statistics are frightening, every eight seconds someone dies from smoking; about 15 billion cigarettes are sold daily. There are 1.1 billion smokers in the world today, and if things continue as they have, that number is expected to increase to 1.6 billion by the year 2025.
Smoking and use of tobacco products is on a decline in most developed countries. However, it is on a rampant increase in other developing countries.
In the US, there has been a decrease in the number of smokers. This can be attributed to the growing awareness of the damage smoking causes to the health of the individual. There is however a sad side to the story, smoking has increased to a drastic level in other countries and the figures are staggering.
China is home to 300 million smokers who consume upwards of 1.7 trillion cigarettes a year, or 3 million cigarettes a minute. As many as 100 million Chinese men presently under the age of 30 will die from tobacco use. There are approximately 120 million smokers in India today, and it is estimated that in the year 2010 alone, there will be close to one million tobacco-related deaths among men and women age 30 to 69 in India. Worldwide, tobacco use will kill more than 175 million people between now and the year 2030. Current tobacco-related health care costs in the United States total US $81 billion annually. Germany spends an average of US $7 billion, and Australia, US $1 billion each year on health care directly related to tobacco use. Health care costs associated with secondhand smoke total US $5 billion a year in the U.S. It is estimated that as many as 500 million people alive today will be killed by tobacco use. The statistics are chilling.

One reason for the sudden spurt in the numbers in these countries may be due to the arrival of tobacco companies. The lax stand of the governments in these countries makes it a good bet to start business. The anti smoking lobbies in these countries have not been able to combat the increase. Increased awareness has made it hard for tobacco companies to work in many countries and so the tobacco companies have shifted their sights to greener pastures.

These countries have a very small anti smoking lobby and the government restrictions o them are not so tough and the government is dependent on the revenues it earns from them. Setting up business in these countries has resulted in increased used of tobacco products.

The anti smoking lobby has been very effective in curtailing the spread and increase of smoking around the world.

Advertising related to tobacco has is banned in most countries. Warnings of the harmful effects of the product have to be printed on the packet. This statutory warning is mandatory in most countries. The WHO in its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which came into effect on 27 February 2005 has specified that all 168 countries should ban advertisements unless their constitutions forbade them to do so.

Today, we are aware of the hazards of smoking. Even though the people are aware of the harmful effects of smoking they rarely seem to pay heed. Everyone knows that smoking causes cancer, heart diseases and can shorten the life span of an individual. It is a highly addictive habit and smokers are at a risk of losing ten years of their life.

With so many smokers around the world, tobacco companies are the only ones gaining form the increase.

Smoking Causes Cancer - Look at pictures to know what will happen if you smoke.

How Early Detection Can Help Lung Cancer Victims

Lung cancer is now the most common form of cancer in the United States. Lung cancer causes more death than any other cancer cases among men and women in this country.
Lung cancer is now the most common form of cancer in the United States. Lung cancer causes more death than any other cancer cases among men and women in this country. Fourteen percent of all cancer records in the United States are lung cancer cases and twenty-eight percent of cancer deaths are from lung cancer patients.

Major causes of lung cancers are cigarette smoking and breathing impure air including asbestos exposure. Asbestos exposure can lead to Mesothelioma, a cancer in the lining of the lungs or abdominal cavity.

Severity of lung cancer depends greatly to the amount of time a person spent smoking. As compared to non-smokers, smokers are at high risk of lung cancer. In fact, smokers are twenty-two percent more at risk of acquiring lung cancer than their non-smoking counterpart.

Additionally, because lung cancer symptoms do not manifest until it is already on its advanced stage, minor lung cancer symptoms are often ignored.

This is because minor lung cancer symptom such as frequent coughing is often associated with itchiness in the throat. Smokers believe that this is an ordinary occurrence among smokers, thus they are not alarmed until they feel more severe lung cancer symptoms.

When this happens, truly the lung cancer symptom shows because of the advanced stage of the cancer. The uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the lungs is already manifesting through the lung cancer symptoms and by this time, secondary cancer cells are already developing in other organs of the body.

Severe lung cancer symptoms include persistent coughing, chronic chest pain, which is associated with shortness of breathing, wheezing and hoarseness of the voice.

Often, because of the similarity of lung cancer symptoms to bronchial asthma, people who self medicate usually try to treat the shortness of breathing with asthma medication.

The medication is thus useless because it is not working on the actual disease. It is thus imperative that minor discomforts such as shortness of breathing be brought to the attention of a competent doctor for evaluation. This will avoid treating a disease with a different medication such as in self-medicating patients.

Other lung cancer symptoms are blood in sputum, recurring cases of pneumonia or bronchitis, neck and facial swelling, sudden weight loss and constant feeling of fatigue. All these lung cancer symptoms occur on the terminal stage of the cancer, and this makes it almost impossible to manage lung cancer and it symptoms.

Additionally, because there is still no known cure for lung cancer, treatments especially on its advanced stage are done to lessen the severity of the lung cancer symptoms. Remission of the disease may no longer happen on the advanced stage.

Thus, it is imperative that minor lung cancer symptoms be monitored. It is still easier to manage lung cancer at this stage, other than in the advanced stage.

Finally, as mentioned earlier, smoking is the major cause of lung cancer, if you cease smoking, this effort will help you slow down the possibility of lung cancer. Even for those long time smokers, withdrawing from smoking will help lessen the possibility of acquiring the disease.

Keeping a healthy body and strong immune system will help avoid lung cancer for smokers or non-smokers alike.

Smokers may cease from smoking to help ensure they will not suffer lung cancer in the future. Then, they will not have to worry about lung cancer symptoms because halting smoking will also halt the possibility of acquiring this deadly disease.

Regular exercise will help ensure your immune system will be strong enough to fight lung cancer and thus no lung cancer symptoms will ever occur.

Living a healthy and active lifestyle, and avoiding smoking will ensure you will leave longer and better.

For more related information visit:http://www.1st-for-manhealth.com
Manhealth is a site that offers advice for avoiding, coping with depression. Get professional knowledge on dealing with symptoms, drug side effects and improving your life!

Smoking Can Make You Look Old

Everyone wishes to look good. The way we look and present ourselves plays an important role in many areas of our lives, especially when it comes to building good first impressions. Unfortunately, smoking does little to promote your general appearance, in particular, your complexion.

Smoking narrows the small blood vessels in your skin, thus reducing healthy blood flow. When this happens, the delivery of essential nutrients like collagen, vitamins and minerals are greatly reduced. Smoking also activates a type of enzyme which break down collagen, the main structural protein in the skin that keeps it elasticated.

Over time, your complexion deteriorates. Your skin will look dry, old and wrinkled. On top of that, frequent squinting from cigarette smoke leads to more wrinkles. You may look as though you're always frowning.

In addition, most smokers experience the darkening of their lips, a typical tell tale sign of a smoker. Other experts add that smoking worsens dark eye circles.

Smoking also affects the healing process of your skin. Wounds and scars tend to take longer time to heal. Smokers are at higher risks to infections and scabbing from operation wounds or open injuries.

Recent research on smoking confirmed that smoking increases one's risk of developing a common form of skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. There are over 1.2 million new cases of squamous cell carcinoma in the U.S. each year.

Fortunately, these changes and risks are reversible. Upon quitting smoking, the skin begins to recover immediately. Within hours, circulation restores and repair continues each day. Risk of skin cancer is also reduced.

So to summarize, if you continue to smoke,

• You'll end up looking many years older

• Your skin develops poor healing abilities

• People can identify you as a smoker from the way you look

• You are exposed to high risk of developing skin cancer

Don't let smoking ruin the way you look. Stop the damage now before its too late.

**References
Action on Smoking and Health
National Library of Medicine
SkinCancerInfo Homepage