Benefits to quit

Quitting can make life better and healthy, as smoking has adverse effects for health.

We can improve our health by quitting smoke. Quitting can lead to better sex life. Quitting smokes improves blood flow and hence sensitivity. Men and women both found themselves orgasms improved. Study shows that nonsmokers are more appealing than smokers. The fertility rate is also improved. Men’s sperm count is improved and become more potent.  When you become a nonsmoker there’s more possibility through IVF and you have chance of having healthy babies.

After quitting smoke your skin to regain its natural look. There would be a delay in ageing and appearances in wrinkles. As a nonsmoker the blood has more levels of oxygen and nutrients so it decrease complexion of skin.

When someone quit smoking, coughing and other breath related diseases decrease. You breathe become easy and lungs starts recovering. Effect of smoking can be noticed when you run or do other physical work. When you quit, it means you will live healthy long age without any other difficulty.

The average life span would also increase because otherwise smokers are more prone to smoke related diseases like heart, lung and chronic bronchitis disease.  One can easily add up to 10 years to his life if he quit by 30. And even if person quit by the age 60 he can add up to 3 years to his life. The more early you quit cigarettes the more you live.

Do you think continuing smoking has any benefits?

Pros and Cons of quitting smoke

Smoker’s make a special relationship with cigarettes.  Anyone can quit cigarettes with strong will power. When one decides to stop smoking, he should know the pros and cons of cessation.

The pros and cons of quit smoking are listed below:

Pros of quitting smokes:

1.      Smoker would feel freedom and independence. He would not have to think when he will get chance for next smoke.

2.      Happy and healthy life can be the reason to quit.

3.      Family, friends and colleagues would be safe from harmful smoke which gets into their eyes and lungs standing near smoker.

4.      Individual will feel self-conscious into going public places.

5.      You would be saving a lot of money and precious time.

6.      There would be increased self-esteem and confidence which can be used in achieving goals.

Cons of quitting smokes:

1.      Natural quit is very challenging and person feels very uneasy in various stages of quitting.

2.      Individual trying to quit would feel disturbed weather he will quit or not.

3.      The correlation with smokers would be changed.

4.       If using pills to quit, it can harm the health.

5.      Some people may gain weight.

6.      Smoking Cessation can be unpleasant.

What can be the other benefits of quitting smoke?

Ten reasons to quit

There is a long list of reasons to quitting smoke. There would be mental, physical and psychological effect of smoking cessation. Here is the top ten 10 reasons to quit smoking:

• The chance of dying with the smoke related diseases like cancer would be same as a non-smoker.
• The blood pressure would become normal because smoking products raise the level of carbon monoxide.
• For pregnant women, quitting would protect baby’s health.
• The feeling of taste and smell would increase.
•  When someone quit smoking he feels more energy.
• You will save lots of money which is spent on smoking products.
•  Quitting cigarettes can add more years to your life and you will be more healthy and happy in old age.
• The sex life would become better because on better blood flow inside the body.
• When you quit, you also save your family and friends health.The oxygen level in body would increase and thus help in stress relief and better concentration power.
• 
  

  

Question: What can be the other reasons to quit smoke?

Fastest way to quit

The way that industries want you to quit smoking is by using nicotine replacement products like patches, lozenges, gum etc. They ALL contain nicotine. Would you get a kid to quit eating Twinkies by feeding him candy bars instead? The fastest and most effective way to quit smoking is the by using natural method.

                                            

Figure 1.positive attitude. [Photograph] by live life happy, April 10, 2013.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/78592755@N06/9479960029/lightbox/?q=positive%20attitude

Smokers, You Can Quit Smoking Faster and Easier Than You Ever Thought Possible!!"

Quitting smoking cold turkey is a challenge that requires great commitment and perseverance. If you want to quit smoking on your own, then you have to stay mentally strong, keep busy and active, and react appropriately to any relapses. If you want to know how to quit smoking cold turkey, just follow these steps.

   

·         Keep your mind tough means deciding to quit smoking completely without the help of nicotine replacement therapy or drugs. This requires perseverance and independence. Only 3-10% of people have been able to successfully quit smoking cold turkey because of the drastic change this makes in their lives. Before you try quitting cold turkey, you should understand the advantages and disadvantages of the process.

·         Make a game plan. Making a game plan will help you be more firm about your decision to quit, and will make you more committed to the process. You should pick a day on your calendar for starting to quit, and mark off every day that you have successfully gone without smoking. Pick a time of your week or month that will be the most stress-free, where you'll be less likely to break down and want a cigarette.

·         Manage your stress. If you manage your stress, you will be much less likely to keep smoking. You may even be using smoking as a coping mechanism to deal with stress, so it's important to find other ways of dealing with your stress so you're not tempted to relapse. Here are some great ways to manage your stress so your mind feels sound while you're trying to quit

·       Keep your body active. If you want to quit smoking, you have to keep your body active so that you have less time to think about indulging in a craving. Keeping your body active can not only keep you feel healthier, but will help you replace your smoking routine with other routines?

Feel free to share the natural ways of quitting smoke.

Anti-smoking campaigns near you

Have a look around to help your community to be smoke free. Did you find any anti-smoking campaign? If yes just join it if no I have one good one to join.

No Smoking Day is a quit smoking campaign which has been running since Ash Wednesday in 1983, when it was called Quit for the day.

The campaign is re-designed for providing quit smoking aid every year to help spur smokers into action.

Its mission is to appeal to smokers of all types - whatever their age, sex or social class. It  publicize and explain the help that smokers can get when they want to stop, and capture the attention of the media with lots of supportive TV, newspaper and radio coverage.

Message:

No Smoking Day is a great opportunity to quit smoking

These quit smoking programs helps smokers to stop smoking whenever they want.

There are health and other benefits to stopping smoking

What they don’t do

·         Try to force smokers to stop - No Smoking Day is for smokers who want to quit

·         Harass smokers - it's not about banning smoking, or picking on smokers

·         Leave quitters high and dry - smokers need support before and after No Smoking Day.

 Question:

Kindly share your views about any other quit smoking campaign.

Is second hand smoking really dangerous?

can you even imagine of having cancer due to smoking habit of your peers at college? If no then take it seriously as second hand smoking   is dangerous too.

 

                            Figure2 nicotine patches. [Photograph] by la quits, Dec 13, 2011.

                                  http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=quitting%20smoke

Body:

Second hand smoking facts:

·         Second-hand smoke has at least twice the amount of nicotine and tar as the smoke inhaled by the smoker

·         It has five times the amount of carbon monoxide, a deadly gas that robs the blood of oxygen

·         It also contains higher levels of ammonia (better known as window cleaner) and cadmium (also found in batteries)

·         The concentration of hydrogen cyanide (a poisonous gas that attacks respiratory enzymes) in tobacco smoke is considered toxic

·         It contains nitrogen dioxide which is measured at fifty times higher than the standard for harm

·         Non-smokers who breathe in second-hand smoke can get many serious diseases. It can cause lung cancer, heart disease, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (emphysema and chronic bronchitis) asthma and other diseases

·         Regular exposure to second-hand smoke increases the risk of lung disease by 25% and heart disease by 10%

Pros and cons of second hand smoking:

·         Second hand smoke exposure is the number two cause of lung cancer (smoking is the number one cause)

·         Marrying a smoker increases your risk of heart disease and COPD

·         Just 30 minutes' exposure to second-hand smoke hardens your arteries (arteriosclerosis); more exposure puts you at risk for heart problems

·         Smoking can increase your risk of miscarriage and stillbirths

·         Babies whose mother smoked while she was pregnant or who are around second-hand smoker after they're born are more likely to die of SIDS

Nicotine: How it harms?

Nicotine Replacement Therapy is the counteractive administration of medicinal nicotine as a replacement to the nicotine from tobacco. Nicotine therapy is prescribed to smokers in order to help them quit smoking. NRT comes in four forms: patch, gum, inhaler and lozenges and has been known to help numerous individuals to quit smoking. There have been some known side effects but the question is “how it harms?”

Some of the common nicotine side effects include irregular heartbeat, fever and headache, nausea with or without vomiting, shortness of breath etc. But are these side effects serious? In considerable number of cases people have complained about acidic or sour stomach, heartburn, indigestion whereas there are less common but serious side effect such as anxiety, diarrhea and feeling of drug dependence, flu like symptoms, troubled sleep and unusual weakness. These side effects might be quite common but they are vital enough to consider whether one should get nicotine replacement therapy or not.

So in my opinion NRT sure does have harmful side effects but considering the success rate it has shown over the last few years I would say if your doctor recommends it for you (keeping in mind ones medical history of course) you should give it a shot as it has helped millions to quit smoking.

 

If any of the readers have tried nicotine replacement therapy feel free to share your experience.

Are quit smoking drugs harmful?

There are many quit smoking medications available in market to help people quit smoking and help them in recovery. Many people use these medications to reduce the nicotine withdrawal symptoms, reduce the urge to smoke and boost your chances of your quitting. But are they safe to use? Are quit smoking drugs harmful to over body?

The 3 most prescribed medications to aid smoking cessation are NRT, Bupropion SR and Varenicline Tartrate (Champix). All these prescribed medications have been known to have side effects.

Nicotine replacement therapy which comes in four forms: patch, gum, inhaler, lozenges, is said to be safe can be used by most smokers. But there have been cases of irregular heartbeat, chest pains, palpitations and severe indigestions while using nicotine patches. NRT patches, gum, inhaler and lozenges contain enough medicine to severely hurt or even kill children and pets. They should always be kept away from the reach of children.

Bupropion SR have been known to trigger seizures in some cases and the risk is even higher with subjects who have a history of seizures.

Some people who have been taking Varenicline Tartrate (Champix) reported serious symptoms such as feeling agitated, depression, feeling hostile, impulsive and disturbing thoughts. These conditions get worse with people who had depression or other mental health problems.

 

As each smoker is different with unique smoking behavior so the medication for quitting smoking also tends to be different. Depending on their health and smoking habits these medications are prescribed to them. These medications are not always safe and in case of complications they must be reported immediately and get medical help right away.

“I can quit smoking too”

I remember me and best friend Andy smoking ever since I have had known him. He used to smoke long before I met him at which point I didn’t. I later on picked smoking from Andy of course. At first it was all about being cool growing up smoking. For us it was the symbol of being a man that we were able to smoke. Like me, Andy was the only child of his parents and Andy being very stubborn never paid attention to what his parents had to say about his smoking behavior. I on the other hand was afraid of my parents finding out about me smoking, so I kept it a secret and avoided smoking anywhere near them that could give my parents any evidence of my smoking habits. Realizing that my so called “symbol of being cool” was turning into an addiction, I tried quitting altogether but the cravings had grown too strong to suppress. Then came the shock of my life, one morning I was woken up by mom saying that Andy had a heart attack and was hospitalized. We rushed to the hospital but when we got there Andy was gone. He had another attack, a very severe one while he has at the hospital and doctors were not able to save him. My best friend who was just 20 at the time of his death had fallen prey to smoking. Andy was the only child, his parents were devastated. His mom was in shock and his dad was blaming himself for not being strong enough to control his son’s smoking habits. For a moment there I saw my parents crying and me lying there on that bed instead of Andy. This could have been me and life of my parents, everyone who cares for me would have never been same again.

I promised myself to never let my parents go through this and later that day went up to my mom and told him everything with a promise turn my life into something better. My mom was heartbroken at first that I had been keeping secrets from them. I feared my dad’s reaction to be worse than that of mom but when he came to know everything he was very supportive and said that he was with me and he was proud me that I came forward. I stared with one day challenge and worked my way up. Support groups were great help and my dad was always there for me to support me to stay positive. It wasn’t an easy task but with the support of my family and friends I was able to make it through. It has been two years since I last smoked and I have been smoke free ever since.

I know it isn’t an easy fight but it’s worth fighting, for the sake of people who love us and care for us.

Working Tips so you can quit too:

There are many proven and unproven methods to quit smoking but in the end all depends on how strongly determined you are about quitting smoking. Here is few ways that helped me quit and hope they work for you as well.

·        Pick a day, don’t wait for the perfect day to quit. Pick any day and mark it. Think of the reasons for quitting- family, health, money and under no circumstance smoke on that day.

·        Work on your hobbies on that day, keep your hands busy. Speak with friends, family for support.

·        Repeat this one day challenge first once in week, then twice and gradually increasing it to quit smoking completely.

·        Start making changes in your life to push smoking out of your life.

·        Join a support group as it has been proven to positively affect smokers in quitting.

·        Consult your physician and get Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT).

·        Try shutting out cigarettes completely, doesn’t matter if you fail don’t give up and start over and try again.

Other methods to quit smoking that are yet to be proven are:

·        Acupuncture

·        Acupressure

·        Electro stimulation

·        Laser Therapy

 

 

Share your ways that have helped you quit smoking so that more and more people can benefit from your experience.

Benefits of Quitting Smoking

The single best thing you can do to improve your health is to quit smoking as the non-smokers have much lower risk of smoke-related diseases such as cancer, heart related problems, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases (COPD) and so on.

Given below is the timeline of benefits if you quit smoking now:

·        (within 8 hours) There is a drop in carbon monoxide level in your body and oxygen levels to normal.

·        (48 hours) Chances of you having heart attack starts decreasing and your taste and smell senses starts improving.

·        (72 hours) Relaxing of the bronchial tubes making the breathing easier and significant increase in lung capacity.

·        (2 weeks-3 months) Improvement in blood circulation and lung functionality increases by 30%

·        (6 Months) Coughing is gone and there is improvement in stuffy nose, tiredness and shortness of breath.

·        (1 year) Smoke-related heart attack risk reduced to half.

·        (10 years) Risk of dying from lung cancer reduced to half.

·        (15 years) your body is as good as a non-smoker and your risk of dying from any ailment is same as that of a normal person.

Other benefits include better example for your children, you no longer affect others with your smoking, and you are saving more money than usual (approx. $3000 annually), you are more energetic, lower life insurance premiums etc.

 

 

So where do you stand on this timeline and how has been progress so far?

So where do you stand on this timeline and how has been progress so far?

How effective is Nicotine Replacement Therapy

Nicotine Replacement Therapies (NRTs) are designed to help people reduce and quit smoking with the help nicotine patches and nicotine gum that work as a replacement to the nicotine from cigarettes. But the question is, is it effective?

According to the study published by the researchers at Harvard School of Public Health and University of Massachusetts Boston, the nicotine replacement therapy doesn’t appear to be effective in helping people quit smoking permanently. Putting together a survey of adult smokers who had quit smoking it was found out the majority of these subjects didn’t get much help from nicotine replacement therapy even when combined with motivational smoking cessation counseling.

Yet another survey conducted on 2676 smokers over a period of 12-26 months. 6.76% of subjects who received nicotine therapy attained sustained self-restraint for six months, twice the rate of those who didn’t receive nicotine therapy.

So it’s in for debate if nicotine replacement therapy is effective or not, as the results varied from person to person.

 

Has anyone of you tried nicotine replacement therapy and how has been your experience?

Some Mind Boggling Smoking Facts:

Most of the time smokers don’t realize that smoking is not only destructive to them but also to the people who get exposed to harmful fumes. Here are few unknown facts about smoking:

1.      Cigarettes are the single-most traded item on this planet and with business of more than $400 billion, cigarette manufacturing is one of the largest industries.
2.      North-American brands such as Marlboro, Kool, Camel and Kent hold roughly 70% of the international cigarette market.
3.      Smoking kills about 37,000 Canadians annually.
4.      And second-hand smoke kills 1100-7800 Canadians each year besides causing many serious health issues such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, circulatory problems, high blood pressure, and sleep problems and so on.
5.      Many of the chemicals used in cigarettes (over 4000 in total) are extremely harmful and have been known to cause cancer.
6.      It’s NOT illegal for a minor to smoke, conflicting to the popular social belief, parents are very much within the law to allow their kids to smoke despite their age. However the SALE of tobacco products is highly regulated with legal legislation.

What do think about these facts? Comment to add in more facts.

What lessons I can learn from quit smoking?

• You can’t expect people to know what you are going through.
• Do not tell everybody about your quitting smoke habit until you reach your goal otherwise people will pull you backward
• Do not tell everybody about your quitting smoke habit until you reach your goal otherwise people will pull you backward
•     Your body lies to you
• Your memory will change with your mood
• Always keep your body active and alert for reducing the effects.
• Always remember the ill effects of smoking on your health.
• Smoking during pregnancy leads to ill health or even disaster death of baby
• Body weight reduces frequently
•  Lung cancer takes you to death bed.
•  Everything smells and taste way different.
• Breath shortening during running
• I have more time after quitting smoke to do other jobs.

·   

Nicotine patches for quitting smoke

Free nicotine patches are just at a distance of some clicks call just put your postal code in the                                   website you will get your destination to say bye-bye to smoke

                                                   

Figure2 nicotine patches. [Photograph] by la quits, Dec 13, 2011.

https://www.flickr.com/search/?q=nicotine%20pATCHES

              This medication belongs to a family of medications known as nicotine replacement therapies. It is used to help people over 18 years of age quit smoking. When a person stops smoking, they go through withdrawal from nicotine that causes symptoms such as irritability, mood swings, restlessness, trouble concentrating, and increased appetite. This medication helps reduce the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal by replacing some of the nicotine that the person no longer receives through cigarettes

            How nicotine do patches work:

             The nicotine patches when applied to the skin delivers a steady dose of nicotine over a 24-hour period. Gradually, the dose is reduced until the person no longer craves nicotine, and they can stop using the medication. This medication works best when used with a comprehensive program to quit smoking.

           Link to get free nicotine patches and nicotine patch coupons:

             Here is the link to get free nicotine patches in Toronto. You just have to put your postal code they will provide you with the resources available near to your location

           http://info.cancer.ca/e/shl/shlshowresults.asp?pc=k4m

Question:  do you know any helpline offering free nicotine to share and help society to be smoke free?

Anti-smoking campaigns near you:

Have a look around to help your community to be smoke free. Did you find any anti-smoking campaign? If yes just join it if no I have one good one to join.

No Smoking Day is a quit smoking campaign which has been running since Ash Wednesday in 1983, when it was called Quit for the day.

The campaign is re-designed for providing quit smoking aid every year to help spur smokers into action.

Its mission is to appeal to smokers of all types - whatever their age, sex or social class. It  publicize and explain the help that smokers can get when they want to stop, and capture the attention of the media with lots of supportive TV, newspaper and radio coverage.

Message:

No Smoking Day is a great opportunity to quit smoking

These quit smoking programs helps smokers to stop smoking whenever they want.

There are health and other benefits to stopping smoking

What they don’t do

·         Try to force smokers to stop - No Smoking Day is for smokers who want to quit

·         Harass smokers - it's not about banning smoking, or picking on smokers

·         Leave quitters high and dry - smokers need support before and after No Smoking Day.

 Question:

Kindly share your views about any other quit smoking campaign.

Best and easy way to quit smoking.

Can you believe it?  You can say no to smoke by using some natural ways of quitting smoke. Try these following easy tips to quit smoking at home.

·         List your reasons for quitting smoke - health, family, money.

·         Write down some new hobbies you can do instead of smoking – exercise, knitting, making model airplanes- something to keep your hands and mind busy.

                               

Figure 1.quit smoking. [Photograph] by Drake Jay Willis, April 16, 2013.

Adapted from http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=quitting%20smoke

·         Speak with friends, family, and colleagues and ask for support. Tell them about your plan to quit, so it feels more real to you.

·         Start making the changes to quitting smoke - stop smoking in the house and in the car. Make your house and car smoke-free, so no one is allowed to smoke inside.

·         Don’t smoke, not even a little.

·         Toss out your cigarettes, other tobacco, and ashtrays.

·         Avoid people and situations where you will be tempted to smoke. If you usually smoke in a certain chair, don’t sit in that chair. If you usually smoke at a nightclub, avoid that nightclub for a while. Change your usual routine, so your new routine doesn’t include smoking.

·         Go for a walk instead of a smoke.

·         Get help from support groups, counselors and your local quit line

·         Take it one day at a time. Remind yourself that once the withdrawal is over, you’ll feel better than you have in years. You deserve to feel better…. You’re almost there!

·         Celebrate your success and give yourself credit! Tell people how long you’ve been quit. It's a major achievement and you should be proud.

·         Be positive. Believe in yourself and your plan.

Do you know any other Natural ways to quit smoking or ideas to share?