Smokeless Tobacco

Smokeless tobacco, also called spit tobacco, includes chewing tobacco (dip and chew), tobacco powder (snuff), as well as flavored tobacco lozenges. These products also contain nicotine. There are two forms of spit tobacco.

These products allow tobacco to be absorbed by the digestive system or through mucous membranes. Smokeless tobacco contains at least 28 cancer-causing substances. Smokeless tobacco is not a safe substitute for smoking cigarettes or cigars. According to the National Institutes of Health, chewing on an average-size piece of chewing tobacco for 30 minutes can deliver as much nicotine as smoking three cigarettes.

Although research is inconsistent, some evidence suggests that smokeless tobacco produces a 50-fold increase in the risk of oral cancer, gingivitis, and tooth loss.

Nicotine Addiction

Nicotine is the chemical in cigarettes that makes them addictive. Higher levels of nicotine in a cigarette can make it harder to quit smoking. A report by the Massachusetts Department of Health found that the amount of nicotine in cigarettes has steadily increased over the last 6 years. Higher nicotine levels were found in all cigarette categories, including 'light" brands. Massachusetts is one of several states that require tobacco manufacturers to submit yearly reports regarding cigarettes.

Some researchers feel nicotine is as addictive as heroin. In fact, nicotine has actions similar to heroin and cocaine, and the chemical affects the same area of the brain.

Depending on the amount taken in, nicotine can act as either a stimulant or a sedative. Cigarette smoking has definite immediate positive effects. For example, it can:

* Boost mood and relieve minor depression
* Suppress little fits of anger
* Enhance concentration and short-term memory
* Produce a modest sense of well-being

Most smokers have a special fondness for the first cigarette of the day because of the way brain cells respond to the day's first nicotine rush. Nicotine, particularly taken in the first few cigarettes of the day, increases the activity of dopamine, a chemical in the brain that elicits pleasurable sensations, a feeling similar to achieving a reward.

Over the course of a day, however, the nerve cells become desensitized to nicotine. Smoking becomes less pleasurable, and smokers may be likely to increase their intake to get their "reward." A smoker develops tolerance to these effects very quickly and requires increasingly higher levels of nicotine.

A smoker may "forget" their craving for nicotine if a part of the brain called the insula becomes damaged. A 2007 study published in the journal Science found that smokers with brain damage to this area were 136 times more likely to forget their addiction to nicotine. The findings may one day lead to new drugs that better help a person quit.

Simple Way to Quit Smoking

When a smoker makes up the mind to stop smoking, he or she brings on other changes in their other parts of life also. Smoking is indeed very addictive habit and is surely a pretty big sum to get rid off without any hard efforts. There are plenty of changes that take place when someone who is addicted to smoking starts quitting it. Although there are many therapies and treatments to help stop it but what one seeks is a simple way to Quit Smoking.

Firstly, try to set a new routine like working out or joining some gym. If that sounds too difficult to carry an interest, next option is trying waking up earlier and to go for a short walk. Mind it that it is the best way to start a long-run jogging! Jogging for about half an hour or so can be very stimulating and the best possible method to start a day with full of energy and enthusiasm. Stop using elevators and escalators wherever possible; simply climb stairs and keep your heart fit. This fitness will help building a physical power to Quit Smoking.

A simple way to quit smoking is treating the mind, body and soul altogether! Try to include dark green leafy vegetables and fresh fruit juices. Go for a fresh fruit juice instead of that coffee break that makes you remember to have a puff of that deadly slim sexy ladystick full of tobacco! She is not for you anymore and you are now fed up of that and want some rejuvenation!

The market is full of stop smoking campaigns, programs that include various products (some call them as nicotine substitutes that help replacing the nicotine), devices that reduce the nicotine content in the cigarettes and many more. There are also herbal pills that help getting rid of smoking. Many health care providers practicing holistic way to heal the diseases state that some holistic exercises such as yogasanas, pranayamas and mediation really help getting self confidence and a firm decision making capability in order to Quit Smoking.

Some folk medicine practitioners as in Southeast Asian countries use aromatherapy (using essential herbal/floral extracts) in order to Quit Smoking. They either massage the body along with head to soothe down the brain’s urge to smoke or simply ask the addicted person to inhale the vaporization. However, such therapy comes under alternative therapy to Quit Smoking but has been practiced since many years.

Along with other therapies, mental counseling is also important. The person who is addicted of smoking must have support from all the friends, relatives, colleagues and also from his/her spouse. Whenever these all supporters find a hint of urge/craving in smoker, they should motivate and divert the mind to some other useful/interesting activities in order to make addicted person forget about smoking.

Hypnosis For Quitting Smoking - Treat Yourself!

Smoking kills! It is known to the world and hence, it is better to quit as quick as possible but how? You ask any smoker that how difficult is to give up coloring his or her lungs! There is a statutory warning on every cigarette pack that it may harm your body, smoking is an enjoyable tasks for millions of people across the world.

If you want to stop smoking, there are many ways however; you got to be having a strong will power to tackle your urges. The market is full of answers to how to Quit Smoking but which one to go for is the confusion.

To find the most effective method to Quit Smoking, Frank Schmidt and another scholar named Vishwesvaran from the University of Iowa used a meta-analysis based on the results of over 600 studies that totaled approximately 72000 smokers. The results those were published in the Journal of Applied Psychology distinctly revealed that hypnosis, to use the same terminology as the quit counselor, was found to be threefold effective than NRT (Source: Elliot Wald, Tami J Eggelston PhD & Fredrick Gibbson PhD, “Cognitive reactions to smoking relapse”, New Scientist, vol 136, pp6).

Hypnosis is a great technique that involves smoker’s own brain to quit this hazardous habit. The most beneficial thing about how to stop smoking using hypnosis is it does not require any tool/instrument and even a number of assistances! To understand the process, simply imagine that you are a hypnotist aiming your brain and whatever you order is the only result you will have. Now it is simple that you order yourself to Quit Smoking and see the result there!

Some of people may say that they could not stop smoking using hypnosis but then they were not firm enough to guide themselves! The negative self-talk might have assured them the failure. They might have repeatedly told to their bodies that this will be tougher to keep smoking away.

One should understand that most of the urges are a result of some conditioned responses! Certainly correct, conditioned response is so much powerful, but you can indeed create a new one replacing the old that makes you to reach a pack of cigarette

Let us checkout the easiest way to stop smoking through hypnosis. Firstly, relax and the eyes (of course not while reading this!) and envisage yourself in a picture where you are free from smoking. Make it as virtual as one can; you can do it by adding some visual experiences as well as positive sounds, the aromas and most importantly the emotions.

The next step is spending time in that imaginary scene that brings the entire picture about when you are a nonsmoker! Make this past the present and also the future. Remember all the happy moments that you have enjoyed as a core part of the life when you were not smoking. Bring all the positive thoughts and then checkout the ease you feel with how to Quit Smoking. Some hypnotists suggest pressing the thumb and finger together of the right hand and hold it, connecting to the brain while thinking and then retaining till the process ends.

Depression While Quitting Smoking

There are three major components; tobacco, nicotine and smoke that can contribute to help the addicted person managing unpleasant feelings of mental problem like depression. These corking effects can help a person dealing with frustrations or fears without getting emotional discomfort. Mental problem or challenge like depression often develops as a result of cumulative and/or stresses that has been there for quite a long period. Such problem is also due to inherited imbalances within the brain equations, and can also because of alteration in the brain chemistry.

In depression prone person, the effect of the stress results in a frequent phase of hyperarousal and any sort of anxiety can also amplify the distress. The addict of smoking is very powerful and it is difficult to get rid of smoking all of a sudden and that is why the withdrawal symptoms that come from Quit Smoking can bring depression.

There is good news that such an occurrence of depression often can be reduced or terminated through self-care therapies, exercises, psychotherapy, and/or medications. The more of such types of strategies that the smoker can include in their Quit Smoking campaign, better is the probability for success.

Such therapies can also accelerate the recovery of the body that suffer from the effects of addiction to cigarette use, and reduce or eliminate some general difficulties encountered while the addicted person reduces or quits.

Reasons and symptoms for depression during stop smoking

The depression might have existed before the person even begin to become addict to smoking and that might re-emerged now when stop smoking program is thought and put into action. It could be also due to altered brain function due to the habit of smoking since years.

Smoking contains nicotine that is a potent mood moderator and is capable to alter the whole brain chemistry. If the person has been self-medicating with the tobacco use there are chances of getting depression. When there is a withdrawal of smoking i.e. nicotine, the body cannot take it easily. The supply that you have been giving to brain has been stopped and the brain cannot function properly without it as it requires more and thinks that that is the only fuel to keep it running normally!

Quit Smoking products are plenty and you can find them on market and also online i.e. on the internet. Such products are known to create/cause the depression in its user and it has been generally specified as their side effects. The depression while stop smoking has a particular definition that one should learn in order to know whether what is felt is depression or something else.

A depressed mood throughout the day or for more days can be specified as depression.

The occurrence of two or more of the following can confirm the condition as depression while Quit Smoking:

- Reduced self-confidence or low self-esteem
- Poor concentration on any subject including routine works
- Insomnia (lack or reduced sleep) or hypersomnia
- Low energy
- Difficulty in making decisions
- Feelings of hopelessness or despair
- Anorexia (poor appetite) or overeating
- Exhaustion or fatigue

These symptoms may not harm physically but then they can surely cause marked distress or impairment in social, personal and occupational life.

After trying to Quit Smoking for many years I finally did it with the help of a few products. Quitting smoking has given me many health benefits and I feel better about myself too.

Quit Smoking by Meditation and Medication

There are many ways to die, choose smoking as one of them that kills you day-by-day and you never know that! It is not a secret anymore that smoking can bring plenty of hazardous health ailments that give raise to various irreversible health problems in the body.

Cigarette pleases the brain for a while and then again gets off from the body leaving the body to have one more stick of smoke! The nicotine, abusing substance, present in the cigars or any tobacco smoking is main culprit for this habit forming. It is quite difficult to get rid of smoking all of a sudden and therefore, a person who is addicted to smoking must be supported by various factors such as smoking-quit kit and also mental counseling.

Below are some of the tips that can help addicted to stop smoking in an effective way. Please bear in mind that without self-confidence, willpower and firm decision, it is difficult to get rid of smoking, no matter which quit-smoking therapy you are on. To prepare for stop smoking campaign:

• Evaluate the things what makes you to smoke and when? Identifying the times you feel too much to smoke. For instance, do you feel to have a stick when you are stressed? When you are enjoying outings with buddies? While you are having a coffee? When you are feeling bore? While you are driving a car?

• Keep a note in your daily-diary that will help you determining such risky periods/phases. Record every time you have had a cigarette, including timing of day and what were you doing that time.

• Come to a plan about what and how things can be done during those periods of time! Find out some substance (say taking some dry fruits or a raw beetle nut that you can simply chew during that times that make you to have to smoke. Alternatively, you can change the desire-making substance like have a tea instead of coffee that may work and your brain may not feel having smoked. In other scene, you can simply go for a walk or listen to some soft music while feeling stressed. Remove ashtrays and cigarettes from drawing room, office chamber, car and even bedroom. You can simply replace it with hard candies or some natural flavored spiced (such as salted Indian gooseberries, cardamoms, cinnamon, etc)

Meditation makes your mind a powerful decision making center. It is very important for the smoker to be firm in the decision to Quit Smoking. Yogas and pranayamas are few of the holistic approach that can help in stop smoking effectively. You can find some Yoga guru or can join some classes to learn those special techniques.

Notes from Mr.Chipper

I'm one of those weird people who never got addicted to smoking. I keep reading that nicotine is one of the most addictive substances known to science, and I believe it, because I know several people who have tried desperately to quit and just can't. But I'm not one of them.

I began smoking in college because I was a total geek and wanted to be cool. I didn't inhale at first, so I looked even sillier than before. But one day a few weeks later, I accidentally inhaled, and instead of choking and coughing, exhaled the smoke in a nice straight line a second or so later. Wow - I'd actually inhaled! I was finally a Smoker!

I smoked all the way through college (cigarettes were .26 a pack at the Target station - now you know about how old I must be!) and for several years after. But it was never a big deal. I don't think I smoked a full pack very often - I don't remember for sure, but I usually smoked between 12 and 15 cigarettes a day. My mouth tasted like the bottom of a birdcage but, hey - that was the price of Being Cool.

The Surgeon-General's report came out about two years after I started smoking and like most of my sorority sisters, I talked about quitting. Unlike them, though, I actually did. I just stopped smoking one day. No biggie. They didn't, though, and after a while I got sick of being around all these smokers, so I began again.

And thus began a 10-year on-again-off-again relationship with cigarettes. I knew I could easily quit, so I never worried about lighting up again. I'd quit for months at a time and then begin again. Once I quit without knowing it - I forgot all about smoking because I was among people who didn't smoke and never thought about it for a couple of weeks.

But over time, I noticed that I started craving cigarettes more. I was smoking more than before, when I smoked. And I felt terribly guilty because by then, the health implications of smoking were well-known, and I believed - and still do - them to be absolutely true.

I had my rules, though. I never smoked until about 10 am or 11 am - not a hard rule to follow because I never wanted to smoke early. I never smoked in the car - ugh! I tossed whatever was left in the pack when I went to bed because I didn't like stale cigarettes. And so on.

In 1972, I was planning a cross-country drive with my boyfriend. I'd been smoking again, more than I wanted to, and knew that I wasn't going to want to do so on the trip - no smoking in the car, remember? So I decided that I would smoke with impunity up until the night before I left, and would then quit.

For the next four months, as I smoked, I constantly told everyone I knew, and myself, that I would quit on April 4. I must have repeated that mantra at least five times a day. I'll quit on April 4. I'll quit on April 4. I'll quit on April 4.

And I did. I opened a new pack while I prepared for my trip on April 3, and when I went to bed that night, pitched it, almost full. Next day, I went on my trip and that was the end of my smoking. It never occurred to me to smoke - I'd quit on April 4, hadn't I?

Since then, I've smoked occasionally. I can smoke one an hour, day, week, month, or year. I have no desire to smoke more than one.

Several friends who were trying to quit asked me how I had done it. Acknowledging that I'm a weird kind of smoker - the scientific researchers call take-it-or-leave-it smokers like me "chippers," for some reason - I shared my experience with them, as I am doing with you. Here's how it worked for me:

1. Pick a date on which you will quit smoking. Make it several months in the future - it takes time to reprogram your brain.

2. Don't hassle yourself when you light up; after all, you're going to quit on October 17, aren't you? Enjoy yourself until then.

3. Every day, repeat your mantra out loud: I'm going to quit smoking on October 17. I'm going to quit smoking on October 17. Repeat it out loud, not in your mind or under your breath. Announce it to everyone you know every time you see them. If you don't know anyone, say it to your mirror. Keep talking.

4. On October 16, break and throw away any remaining cigarettes before you turn out the light.

5. On October 17, quit smoking.

That's it.

I don't want to belittle the grip cigarettes can exert on our lives or denigrate the power of this habit by making quitting look easy. Like any other system, this one takes some work, but the work is done up front. By repeating your date mantra over and over again for a few months, you are programming your brain in ways that I don't really understand, if anyone does. But thought is powerful, and generates action, and creates reality - what you can think, you can do. (Well, you can't fly, of course, but you know what I'm talking about.) You'll find that you are ready to quit on your target date.

Which isn't to say you'll never crave another cigarette. But if you take it day by day, you can apply this method to staying quit; try "I really hate to smoke." "I don't want to smoke today." Affirmations - or brainwashing, if you insist! - work.

Several of my friends tried this and found that it worked for them. I have found, for myself, that over time, I've completely put cigarettes out of my consciousness; I can't remember the last time I had one, and the thought of taking a drag makes me sick. I've done a pretty good job of brainwashing myself!

I was feeling pretty smug about my little system until I read an article somewhere that advocated the same method: pick a date, repeat it out loud for a long time, and you'll find that you can do it. I have mixed feelings; on the one hand, it's no longer The Margaret Method, and on the other, it's been validated by some experts.

Try it and let me know how it works for you.

Useless Standard Approach to Quit Smoking Problem

Below is text compiled from standard quit smoking pieces of writing. It is look well, please, take a look and decide for yourself is it worth your attention?

"The brain of an addicted smoker treats nicotine as if it is crucial for survival. Most smokers try to quit smoking without help and support, which resulting in a low success rate. Smoking stimulates the mind and body, and the concentrated dose of nicotine provoke instant flood of dopamine that wash pleasure centers. Inhaling smoke is the quickest, most efficient way to get nicotine to the brain.

Smoking triggers the reward systems in the brain that drive you to seek food, water and sex, brain feels that this has to do with survival. Nicotine is not equally addictive for everyone, but most people who get hooked sooner or later will smoke all day, every day. Nicotine by itself does not cause cancer, heart disease or other major health problems associated with smoking; other chemicals in tobacco smoke are to blame. However, even with the most successful quit smoking and nicotine replacement drugs, only about 30 percent of quit smoking attempts last more than half a year. Compared with quitting smoking cold turkey method, however, that is a huge progress. Less than 10 percents of smokers who trying to quit smoking cold turkey manages to go six months without a cigarette. Most do not make it past a week.

When longtime smokers finally do quit smoking, they soon understand that not smoking does not really make them nonsmokers. Former smokers have to experience again that it is possible to get pleasure from life without cigarettes, although the cravings may never stop completely."

It seems that everything above is somewhat true, but must be served up with different dressing. First, it definitely possible to quit smoking even without help, support and quit smoking or nicotine replacement drugs. There is sufficient quantity of people, who did this. Second, you don't need to crave for cigarettes all your ex-smoker's life, it's nonsense. Third, and most important is that you must shift your brain and set your mind free from depressing smoking routine before you are going to quit smoking. There is no reason smoker need a cigarette, to say the least of it. Every smoker, who is going to respond to quit smoking challenge, should know that there are no excuses for keeping this evil-smelling practice in life, while it is achievable to turn into someone, who is free from nicotine addiction and happy and lucky without cigarettes.

Quit Smoking - Why Hypnotherapy Is So Successful?

What if your attitude to quitting smoking is absolutely false? What if, after just one session of hypnotherapy you find it extremely simple to turn into and stay a happy, joyful nonsmoker for life? The reason why hypnotherapy is so successful is because both our thinking about smoking and our habitual smoking behaviours exist in your unconscious mind.

Smokers buy into years of conditioning telling them that smoking made them feel somehow better, more positive and calmer. And as a result of lighting up those first few cigarettes, smokers permanently establish these tremendously obstructive thinking directly into their unconscious, beliefs that also incorporated the idea that quitting smoking was going to be very hard.

At the same time, smokers make a conscious choice to choose those supposed benefits of feeling better, more comfortable and secure, over the original physical effects of inhaling the poisonous smoke. So as time goes on and those scratchy physical reactions start to fall down, as a result of their recently created nicotine addiction, they started to misunderstand the relief of feeding that addiction with feelings of relaxation and self-assurance.

After smoking thousands of cigarettes, smokers have strengthen those useless values about smoking and how difficult it is to stop it and, they have also trained their unconscious minds to incorrectly connect the process of lighting and smoking a cigarette with feeling positive, self-assured and comfortable.

Hypnotherapy let us change our unconscious mind of a smoker to disdain those false beliefs about smoking and hardness of quitting smoking, and to change those lifeless benefits to something more satisfying and exciting!

Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Easy Tips

This is the most popular quit smoking method and most every long-term ex-smokers quit smoking cold turkey. It can be very difficult to quit smoking cold turkey, but it does not cost a thing and here are some things you can do to make the cold turkey method easier on yourself.

- Pick a long enough period of time when your life is going to be less stressful. Summer break, the holidays, a vacation are all possibilities. You most likely smoke more when you are stressed, so eliminating the stress is a good place to start.

- Keep a lot of your favorite non-alcoholic drinks on hand. Drinking will keep you hydrated and give you something to do with your mouth instead of puffing on a cigarette; also, it will help your body flush the toxins out of your system faster.

- Avoid situations that frustrate you - you are not going to sustain a stress well. Also, avoid any place where people will be smoking.

- When a craving hits, try closing your eyes and counting to ten while taking some deep breaths. If that doesn't work, take a walk to get yourself away from temptation.

- While quitting try to avoid alcohol and caffeine as much as possible because these stimulants disrupt sleep and prevent you body from effective relaxation.

- During quitting smoking process, it is normal for your mind to forget many of the reasons that motivated you to quit smoking. Write your list of your personal quit smoking reasons and carry it with you.

- Make sure your friends and relatives are aware of your quit smoking challenge so that they can support you.

- Remember, that there is no such thing as just one puff. You are just one puff away from failure. Never Take Another Puff!

If you wish to beat smoking for good, make sure that you are changing your mindset while you are at smoking. You have to fall out of love with smoking, you have to know why nicotine addiction is bad for you, why you do not need it, and you have to know why it is not a part of you. You need to answer all these questions to quit smoking for good before you setup your quit day.

Keep Trying

Apart from the addiction of the body on chemical substances, a smoking addiction is often related to everyday lifestyle events, which can include thinking deeply, eating, drinking tea, coffee or alcohol, or general socializing. Accordingly, smokers may miss the act of smoking mostly at these times, and this may increase the difficulty inherent in a quitting smoking attempt. Because of a lower dopamine response from nicotine receptors in the brain, a degree of depression may develop, while the smoker feels less able to complete the day-to-day tasks formerly associated with smoking.

A small number of smokers are successful with their very first quit smoking attempt. Many smokers find it difficult to quit, even in the face of serious smoking-related disease in themselves or close relatives or friends. A firm resolution to fight with addiction is vital. The typical attempt of a smoker that finally succeeds is the seventh to fifteenth try. Each attempt is a learning experience that moves them that much closer to their goal of final freedom from smoking addiction.

Smoking cessation is clearly associated with better mental health and spending less of one's life with diseases of old age. Quitting smoking will almost always lead to a longer and healthier life. The studies showed that those who stopped smoking before they reached thirty years of age lived almost as long as those who never smoked. Quitting smoking in middle age can add up to ten years of healthy life and stopping even over fifty can still add years of healthy life.

You Can Quit Smoking

Nicotine is a powerful addiction. If you have tried to quit, you know how hard it can be. People who are trying to quit smoking go through both physical and psychological withdrawal. Here are some tips for quitting.

Cravings

Drink a lot of liquids, especially water. Try herbal teas or fruit juices. Limit coffee, soft drinks, and alcohol - they can increase your urge to smoke.

Avoid sugar and fatty food. Try low-calorie foods for snacking - carrots and other vegetables, sugarless gum, air-popped popcorn, or low-fat cottage cheese. Don't skip meals.

Exercise regularly and moderately. Regular exercise helps. Joining an exercise group provides a healthy activity and a new routine.

Get more sleep. Try to go to sleep earlier and get more rest.

Take deep breaths. Distract yourself. When cravings hit, do something else immediately, such as talking to someone, getting busy with a task, or taking deep breaths.

Change your habits. Use a different route to work, eat breakfast in a different place, or get up from the table right away after eating.

How Smoking Affects Your Body

There's hardly a part of the human body that's not affected by the chemicals in the cigarettes you smoke. Let's take a tour of your body to look at how smoking affects it.

Starting at the Top

As a smoker, you're at risk for cancer of the mouth. Tobacco smoke can also cause gum disease, tooth decay and bad breath. The teeth become unsightly and yellow. Smokers may experience frequent headaches. And lack of oxygen and narrowed blood vessels to the brain can lead to strokes.

Lungs and Bronchi

Moving down to your chest, smoke passes through the bronchi, or breathing tubes. Hydrogen cyanide and other chemicals in the smoke attack the lining of the bronchi, inflaming them and causing that chronic smoker's cough. Because the bronchi are weakened, you're more likely to get bronchial infections. Mucus secretion in your lungs is impaired, also leading to chronic coughing. Smokers are 10 times as likely to get lung cancer and emphysema as nonsmokers.

Smoking and the Heart

The effects of smoking on your heart are devastating. Nicotine raises blood pressure and makes the blood clot more easily. Carbon monoxide robs the blood of oxygen and leads to the development of cholesterol deposits on the artery walls. All of these effects add up to an increased risk of heart attack. In addition, the poor circulation resulting from cholesterol deposits can cause strokes, loss of circulation in fingers and toes and impotence.

Smoking and the Body's Organs

The digestive system is also affected. The tars in smoke can trigger cancer of the esophagus and throat. Smoking causes increased stomach acid secretion, leading to heartburn and ulcers. Smokers have higher rates of deadly pancreatic cancer. Many of the carcinogens from cigarettes are excreted in the urine where their presence can cause bladder cancer, which is often fatal. High blood pressure from smoking can damage the kidneys.

The Results

The health effects of smoking have results we can measure. Forty percent of men who are heavy smokers will die before they reach retirement age, as compared to only 18 percent of nonsmokers. Women who smoke face an increased risk of cervical cancer, and pregnant women who smoke take a chance with the health of their unborn babies.

But the good news is that when you quit smoking your body begins to repair itself. Ten years after you quit, your body has repaired most of the damage smoking caused. Those who wait until cancer or emphysema has set in aren't so lucky—these conditions are usually fatal. It's one more reason to take the big step and quit now.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total numbers of 1000 subjects were interviewed regarding tobacco smoking. These subjects belonged to different areas of Abbottabad and were engaged in different professions. A questionnaire regarding their personal/religious status and specific information about smoking was filled in individually.

The Difficulty in Kicking the Habit

Smokers may have started smoking because their friends did or because it seemed cool. But they keep on smoking because they became addicted to nicotine, one of the chemicals in cigarettes and smokeless tobacco. Nicotine is both a stimulant and a depressant. That means nicotine increases the heart rate at first and makes people feel more alert (like caffeine, another stimulant). Then it causes depression and fatigue. The depression and fatigue — and the drug withdrawal from nicotine — make people crave another cigarette to perk up again. According to many experts, the nicotine in tobacco is as addictive as cocaine or heroin.

But don't be discouraged; millions of Americans have permanently quit smoking.

What about nicotine patches?

Nicotine patches are generally very effective when used by a motivated smoker. Most people note a very substantial decrease in their withdrawal symptoms. These symptoms will not totally disappear, but instead of being overwhelming and almost all-encompassing, the symptoms often become manageable. 

There are several manufacturers and several strategies for the use of the nicotine patches. Many come in 7, 14, and 21 mg strengths. Most people who smoke one pack per day find that the 21 mg patch is the most effective in diminishing their withdrawal symptoms. Most physicians recommend using the 21 mg patch for 6 weeks, the 14 mg patch for 2 weeks, and the 7 mg patch for 2 weeks, and then discontinuing. I generally add to this to keep one or two of the 7 mg patches around if the person's not quite ready to quit so they can slap one back on and buy some more patches. 

Patches may be worn during the day only, or throughout the 24 hour period. Use of the patches at night is often associated with sleep disturbances, restlessness, vivid dreams or nightmares. Taking them off at night may be associated with withdrawal symptoms when one wakes up in the morning. 

The patch itself may cause some skin irritation. This can be minimized by using the patch on an area of the skin that is thick (such as the shoulder, back or thigh). Apply it to a hairless are of skin, hold it for 10 seconds. You should wash your hands after doing this to avoid getting chemicals in your eyes. To avoid skin irritation, move the patch around. If irritation does develop, some of over-the-counter steroid cream is usually effective in quieting it down. 

One should avoid smoking while the patch is on and within 15 minutes of taking the patch off. This is felt to be dangerous due to the additive nicotine levels. It also simply defeats the purpose of the patch. 

There are three manufacturers of patches: 

Use of patches generally double the success rates of other programs. They are not a panacea. There is not one milligram of will-power contained in the patch or any other nicotine replacement therapy. Lot's of people fail, and others relapse. It can be very helpful for some people however. I think that patches have an additional advantage of having a constant level of nicotine in the blood, as opposed to the peaks and valleys associated with smoking and with other nicotine replacement strategies.

What are the methods of quitting?

There are many . . . 

"Cold Turkey". That world famous sudden cessation. The advantage is getting it over with. It is still quite effective for many, many people. 

"Gradual Tapering". Seems to make the most sense in that it addresses cutting down the level of craving before totally stopping. My own experience with people trying to quit is that it is one of the least effective ways. The commitment is to eventually stopping, and most people will go ahead and have an extra cigarette. 

"Cutting back" may sound like a very good idea, but actually probably doesn't do much to lower your health risks substantially. Most people go back to their previous levels rapidly. If it's a first step towards quitting that has a limited time frame (say, one month) with a commitment to stop after this, then it may be a useful technique for a very few people. 

Nicotine replacement therapy has a proven record of aiding in quitting. There are numerous forms available these days. There are two main types: patches (which provide a continuous supply of nicotine, aiding in losing the addiction to the "spike" of nicotine which occurs with smoking) and others which replace nicotine in "doses" delivered by gum, nasal spray, or other products. 

Antidepressants such as Zyban may be useful as an aid for quite a few people. 

Stop smoking clinics and programs, both commercial and non-profit are available. 

Self-help tapes and books (and this website) are available as guides.

Besides the addiction to nicotine, what else keeps me smoking?

The addiction to nicotine certainly makes it hard to quit, but so do some of the behavioral aspects of smoking. Smoking also provides other side benefits which are real. These are some of the other reasons it's hard to stop. See which of the following areas seem to be important to you, and then note some of the solutions to minimize their importance as you plan to quit. 

Stimulation. It helps you wake up, get organized, and get going. 
Plan ahead. Organize the day so you won't need a cigarette to get going. Go to bed early, plan some early exercise.
Chew on gum, brush your teeth to give your mouth some stimulation.
Avoid fatigue 

Handling. You enjoy some of the rituals of smoking. 

Doodle
Handle a coin or rock.
Clean or polish your fingernails
Wear a rubber band around your wrist and snap it. 

Pleasure. If you enjoy the "luxury" of the feeling that smoking gives you, then 

Keep a list of the pleasures of non-smoking.
Keep a list of the displeasures that smoking already or will cause.
Begin an enjoyable exercise program.
Treat yourself to something special. 

Relaxation. Smoking can be the classic "crutch" in times of discomfort. You may find it much easier to stop when things are going well, but particularly difficult when things are going poorly. 

Try to find other relaxing alternatives, such as listening to music, a walk or a talk.
Take up a hobby or sport.
Take deep breaths. Learn other relaxation techniques.. 

Craving. Join the club! That's the combination of the physical, mental, and psychological components of this complex and powerful addiction. 

Change your routine. Take a different route to work. Drink tea if you're a coffee drinker, etc.
You may benefit particularly from nicotine replacement therapies noted below. 

Habit. You smoke automatically. Chances are you don't enjoy many of them. 

Throw away your cigarettes, ashtrays, etc.
If your spouse or friends smoke, designate a part of your home as "smoke-free".
Go to places where smoking is prohibited, such as theaters, libraries, etc.
Always sit in the non-smoking parts of restaurants.
Have your car cleaned.

What if My Friend Smokes?

If you have friends who smoke or use tobacco, you can help them by encouraging them to quit. Here are some reasons you can mention:
It will hurt their health.
It will make their breath stinky.
It will turn their teeth yellow.
It will give them less endurance when running or playing sports.
It's expensive.
It's illegal to buy cigarettes when you're underage.

If you think it will help, you could print out articles like this one to give to a friend who smokes. He or she may be interested in learning more about the dangers of smoking. But people don't like to hear that they're doing something wrong, so your pal also could be a little angry. If that happens, don't push it too much. In time, your friend may realize you are right.

In the meantime, it could help to talk with a parent or a school counselor if you're worried about your friend. When your friend is ready, a grown-up can help him or her quit for good. If your friend decides to quit, lend your support. You might say it's time to kick some butts!

Why Is It So Bad for You?

Cigarettes and smokeless tobacco kill hundreds of thousands of Americans every year. You know those rubber bracelets that were created to bring attention to different causes? The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids created a red one with the number 1,200 on it. Why 1,200? That's the number of people who die each day due to smoking.

The nicotine and other poisonous chemicals in tobacco cause lots of diseases, like heart problems and some kinds of cancer. If you smoke, you hurt your lungs and heart each time you light up. It also can make it more difficult for blood to move around in the body, so smokers may feel tired and cranky. The longer you smoke, the worse the damage becomes.

What Are Smoking and Smokeless Tobacco?

Tobacco (say: tuh-ba-ko) is a plant that can be smoked in cigarettes, pipes, or cigars. It's the same plant that's in smokeless tobacco, known as dip, chew, snuff, spit, or chewing tobacco. Smokeless tobacco is not lit or inhaled like tobacco in cigarettes, pipes, and cigars. Instead, smokeless tobacco is put between the lip and gum and sucked on inside the mouth.

Tobacco contains nicotine (say: nih-kuh-teen), a chemical that causes a tingly or pleasant feeling — but that feeling only lasts for a little while. Nicotine is also addictive (say: uh-dik-tiv). That means that if you start to use nicotine, your body and mind will become so used to it that you'll need to have it just to feel OK.

Anyone who starts smoking could become addicted to it. If you're addicted to something, it's very hard to stop doing it, even if you want to. Some kids get addicted right away. And adults are often addicted, which is why so many of them have a hard time quitting smoking.

Kicking Butts and Staying Smoke Free

All forms of tobacco — cigarettes, pipes, cigars, and smokeless tobacco — are hazardous. It doesn't help to substitute products that seem like they're better for you than regular cigarettes, such as filtered or low-tar cigarettes.

The only thing that really helps a person avoid the problems associated with smoking is staying smoke free. This isn't always easy, especially if everyone around you is smoking and offering you cigarettes. It may help to have your reasons for not smoking ready for times you may feel the pressure, such as "I just don't like it" or "I want to stay in shape for soccer" (or football, basketball, or other sport).

The good news for people who don't smoke or who want to quit is that studies show that the number of teens who smoke has dropped dramatically. Today, about 23% of high school students smoke.

If you do smoke and want to quit, you have lots of information and support available. Different approaches to quitting work for different people. For some, quitting cold turkey is best. Others find that a slower approach is the way to go. Some people find that it helps to go to a support group especially for teens. These are sometimes sponsored by local hospitals or organizations like the American Cancer Society. The Internet offers a number of good resources to help people quit smoking.

When quitting, it can be helpful to realize that the first few days are the hardest. So don’t give up. Some people find they have a few relapses before they manage to quit for good.

Staying smoke free will give you a whole lot more of everything — more energy, better performance, better looks, more money in your pocket, and, in the long run, more life to live!

Smoking Facts for Parents and Teens

Parents are the single biggest influence in their children’s lives. Use your voice and let your kids know that smoking is bad news. Your teens may seem to be tuning you out and accuse you of lecturing, but they are listening. Discuss the dangers of teen smoking with them early and often.

The smoking facts in this article have been compiled with teens in mind. Arm yourself with knowledge and information that will get your child’s attention.

The ingredients and additives in cigarettes when burned, create toxic, harmful chemical compounds. There are over 4000 chemicals in cigarette smoke, and more than 40 of them are known carcinogens.

Harmful Effects of Smoking

BRAIN: Nicotine directly affects, alters, and takes control of specialised receptor cells in the brain responsible for regulating well-being, mood and memory. The drug remains active for 20-40 minutes, then withdrawal symptoms begin: mood changes, irritability, anxiety. Discomfort becomes more severe stimulating intense craving for more nicotine. Regular and long term use lead to addiction. 


THROAT: Can cause cancer of larynx and oesophagus, irritates membranes of the throat. 


HEART: Nicotine raises heart rate, increases blood pressure, and constricts blood vessels. Carbon monoxide (the deadly gas produced from cigarette smoke) decreases the delivery of oxygen to the heart, increasing risk of heart attacks and strokes. Smoking also results in a weakening of the heart muscle's ability to pump blood, leading to death. Causes aortic aneurysms (blood-filled sac in aorta) and pulmonary heart disease. Stimulates adrenaline production, speeding up the heart and increasing blood pressure.


KIDNEYS: Reduces the kidneys' ability to process fluids and waste, inhibiting formation of urine.Cancer.


REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM: Reduces sex drive and increases risk of impotence in males. In females, increased chance of cervical cancer, reduces fertility and brings on menopause earlier.
Smoking increases chance of miscarriage, pregnancy complications, bleeding, and premature delivery. Smoking during pregnancy may cause impairment of the baby's growth, intellect, and emotional development.  


CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM: Nicotine stimulates adrenaline production: the heart rate goes up by 15-20 beats per minute. It increases blood pressure, constricts blood vessels, reduces sex drive and inhibits urine formation. 

MOUTH: Dulls taste buds, irritates membranes of mouth causing bleeding and receding gums, gum disease, foul breath, and numbness. Also causes stained teeth, tooth decay and loss of teeth. Cancer of the Mouth.


LUNGS: Causes progressive limitation of air in and out of lungs - Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease. Damages and destroys tiny air sacs of the lungs which reduces the lungs' ability to bring in oxygen and remove carbon dioxide -Emphysema. Causes bronchial tubes to be inflamed, thickened, and increases mucus resulting in narrowing of air passages -Chronic Bronchitis. Tar and other particles settle in bronchial tubes causing lung cancer. Tar and smoke destroy tiny cells that clean, protect, and remove foreign particles from lungs.


STOMACH AND DUODENUM: Stomach and duodenal ulcers develop, creating burning pain.


BLOOD VESSELS: Nicotine causes blood vessels to constrict, increasing blood pressure and the risk of heart attack. 

BLADDER:Cancer of bladder.


BONES: Increases risk of early onset of osteoporosis.


VERTEBRAE: Increased risk of vertebral cancer.

Miscellaneous

The effectiveness of many medications is greatly reduced in smokers. 
  
Nicotine has harmful effects on the stomach, the organ that helps in the digestion of food. 
  
Smoking accelerates the aging process!! 
  
Smoking has been associated to snoring and sleep apnea (you stop breathing when you sleep) 
  
In women, hoarseness is 17 times more frequent in smokers than in nonsmokers. 
  
Excess facial hair is 7 times more frequent in women who smoke compared to those who do not!

Passive (Second Hand) Smoking

It is estimated that there are about 53,000 deaths per year as a result of passive smoking in the United States alone! 37,000 of these deaths come from cardiovascular disease. 
  
The effects of tobacco smoke are just as bad, if not worse, in nonsmokers as in smokers. All of the risks for smokers also hold true for exposure to second hand smoke. Tobacco smoke is made up of many hazardous vapors and particles that when inhaled are harmful to both the smoker and to others around him/her. 
  
The smoke at the end of a burning cigarette has more particles that are smaller and more harmful than the smoke directly inhaled by the smoker. These smaller particles go deeper into the lung tissue and do more damage. 
  
Carbon Monoxide from passive smoke causes greater lack of oxygen in nonsmokers than the person smoking. With reduced oxygen, the heart, lungs and brain cannot function properly. This leads to permanent brain and vascular (blood vessel) change. These changes are more serious in women who are on the "pill!" 
  
When a nonsmoker marries a smoker, the risk of getting lung cancer and/or heart disease is doubled! 
  
Infants and children have tender tissues and are more susceptible to second hand smoke! They develop many lung problems (allergies, asthma, chronic bronchitis, heart problems). Many develop cancers when they get older. Children of parents who smoke, are hospitalized more frequently for bronchitis and pneumonia during their first year of life 
and have more acute respiratory illnesses before the age of two. They also have more cough and phlegm and may develop more chronic ear infections.

Primary lung cancer

Alternative Names: lung cancer; bronchogenic cancer; cancer of the lung 
Definition: A malignant tumor that arises from lung tissue. 
  
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
Most lung cancers (83%) are associated with, and probably caused by, cigarette smoking. The more cigarettes smoked per day and the earlier the age at which smoking started, the greater the risk of lung cancer. Second-hand smoke has also been shown to increase the risk. Government surveys show that as many as 3,000 people each year develop lung cancer from second-hand smoke. High levels of pollution, radiation, and asbestos exposure may also increase the risk. Cooks and chemists also have an increased risk.

Lung cancer begins by cellular changes in the bronchial epithelial cells and can invade adjacent tissues before symptoms are noticed.

There are many types of lung cancer, but most can be categorized into two basic types, small cell and nonsmall cell. In general, the small cell type has usually spread by the time of diagnosis and is treated by chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. The nonsmall type may not have spread at the time of diagnosis, and surgical resection of this type may be possible. Metastatic lung cancer (the spread of cancer) can occur to almost any area of the body with common sites being the brain, bone, bone marrow, and liver. Treatment is based on determining the cellular type of the cancer, and by staging, which determines the size of the primary tumor and the extent of spreading to lymph nodes or sites of metastasis. Lung cancer is the leading cause of death in both men and women. The peak incidence occurs between 55 and 65 years old. The incidence is 1 out of 1,000 people.

Cancers

Cigarette Smoking is the major cause of cancer of the lips, tongue, salivary glands, mouth, larynx, esophagus, and middle and lower pharynx.

The development of stomach cancer can be directly associated with smoking.

Smoking is known to cause bladder cancer. 

Quitting smoking will not result in a significant reduction in the risk of getting bladder cancer.

Cigarette smoking has been linked to cancers of the renal pelvis (part of the kidney), uterine cervix, and pancreas.

A strong association exists between smoking and leukemia.

Heart Disease

Cigarette smoking accounts for 30% of all heart disease deaths.

The carbon monoxide in the cigarette smoke increases the amount of cholesterol clogging the arteries. 

Smoking causes a stiffness in the walls of the arteries which is harmful to the artery and increases the risk for the artery to rupture.

The nicotine in cigarettes can raise your blood pressure, heart rate, and the oxygen demand for muscles, especially the heart (the heart is a muscle).

A coronary spasm may occur during smoking, which may lead to chest pain, and a heart attack

Blood clots more readily in smokers than in nonsmokers.

Effects on your body

The amount of nicotine entering the lungs, oral cavity, and gastrointestinal system, is increased by smoking (about 90% is absorbed into your body)!

The nicotine particles act on every cell (all your organs are made of little units called cells) in your body. But remember, there are no healthy benefits of taking nicotine.

In your body nicotine can increase salivation (makes you drool), increase stomach acid and motility (gives you heartburn and diarrhea), and increase heart rate and blood pressure.

In your brain nicotine can act as a psychomotor stimulant, increase alertness, increase concentration, increase attention, and can make you less hungry. Maybe this sounds great, but wait there's more!!!

Repeated use produces tolerance and dependence (you're addicted and can't live without the stuff) in as little as a week! 70% of those who quit relapse in one year.

And, there's even a withdrawal syndrome (so now it's even gonna make you sick when you try to quit). So when you're not smoking you might become irritable, have less concentration, gain some weight, and maybe some tremors. But the worst will probably be those intense cravings for another puff to get your nicotine.
The bad news is withdrawal occurs within several hours of your last fix and is about 1 week long (unfortunately, the cravings and weight gain may last a little longer). This is what stops many people from being able to quit.

The good news is, there is help and support to help you kick the nicotine addiction.

Smoking and Heart Failure

Smokers who have heart failure can automatically eliminate a major source of damage to their heart by quitting. Each puff of nicotine from tobacco smoke temporarily increases heart rate and blood pressure, even as less oxygen-rich blood circulates through the body. Smoking also leads to clumping or stickiness in the blood vessels feeding the heart. People who quit smoking are more likely to have their heart failure symptoms improve.

Smoking and Lung Diseases

Tobacco smoke contains large quantities of toxic chemicals. By 1836, it was already well-established "that thousands and tens of thousands die of diseases of the lungs generally brought on by tobacco smoking. . . . How is it possible to be otherwise? Tobacco is a poison. A man will die of an infusion of tobacco as of a shot through the head." —Samuel Green, New England Almanack and Farmer's Friend (1836). 

Tobacco effects include "disturbances . . . on the bronchial surface of the lung" and the fact that "no smoker can ever be said . . . to be well."—"Effects of Tobacco," The Confederate States Medical & Surgical Journal (November 1864). 

"The body needs food, clothing, sunshine, bathing, and drink, but none of these wants are so pressing as pure air. Other wants may be met by occasional supply, but air must be furnished every moment or we die."—Theodore F. Frech and Luther H. Higley, The Evils of Tobacco and Cigarettes (Butler, Indiana: The Higley Printing Co, 1916), p 31. 

"The physician must recognize the fact that smoking is a universal affair . . . harmful . . . to normal people. . . . [changing them into injured category]."—Schwartz, Herbert F., M.D., "Smoking and Tuberculosis," 45 New York State Journal of Medicine (#14) 1539-1542 (15 July 1945). 

"Virtually everyone in the United States is at some risk of harm from exposure to secondhand smoke. The reason is that nearly everyone is exposed to tobacco smoke, and there is no evidence of a threshold level of exposure below which the exposure is safe."—Ronald M. Davis, M.D., "Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke," 280 J Am Med Assn (#22) 1947-1949 (9 Dec 1998). 

"Over time, inhaling [toxic] tobacco smoke (ETS)--a process often called "passive smoking"--can cause otherwise healthy adults to develop chronic respiratory symptoms," says the article, "Exposure To Environmental Tobacco Smoke Causes Respiratory Symptoms In Healthy Adults" (ScienceDaily, 22 November 2006).