If you are serious about long life
Smoking is a dangerous habit that not only effects the one who smokes, as they say that each cigarette smoked lessens life by 5 to 10 minutes at an average, but also effects life of persons around him and his next generations as well because he passes on damaged DNA to his children in future caused by smoking tobacco. This takes about three month’s time to develop a fertile sperm cell in the productive system of a man therefore if the person is smoking during the conception period it may damage the structure of DNA resulting in damaged DNA for the baby to born. Would be parents therefore, advised to stop smoking at least three months before the conception process and never smoke again even after the child is born in his best interests.
Parents who smoke pass-on the defects to their children, has been established by different tests conducted on sperm and blood samples of smoking father, blood tests on mother, development and progress of fetus. In almost al results obtained confirm some reports in common that the smoking habits have a major role to play on the DNA structure of the child born to parents who smoked before or after conception, pregnancy and after the child’s birth. Most people relate the bad effects of smoking by the mother of the would be child but the fact is both parents are as responsible and making the structure of DNA worse by smoking therefore best to quit as early as possible, at least three months before while planning family ways.
For a longer life, one should get rid of smoking habits immediately to avoid its long and short time bad effects on not only the user but his coming generations as well. The use of tobacco by smoking cigarette etc has wide range of fatal diseases associated with this bad habit that takes a man in its grip up to the extent of addiction. In our country, the average age when a person begins smoking considered approximately 18 but children in age group of 14-16 also found smoking openly, which puts them at higher risk of different diseases related to smoking those lead ultimately to cancer of lungs, mouth and other vital organs.
Passive smoking is as dangerous
As they say that the men who smoke pass on different dangerous defects to their children for sure although passive smoking is as dangerous and must be avoided while in company of pregnant mothers and children because the ill effects on persons of smoke are as bad or more as on the person smoking himself. The smoke inhaled by the persons around a smoker effect in far worse way than it effects to the person smoking himself.
Effects of smoking
A Cigarette generally contains 4000 different harmful chemicals like nicotine, arsenic, monoxide, and ammonia besides the excessive quantity of tar and with no proper filter in cigarettes, which puts smokers in more danger zone of health hazards. Cigarette also contains at least 45 known particles, which can cause different kinds of cancers to persons smoking tobacco. Nicotine an alkaloid and one of the most harmful chemicals for human body containing nitrogen found in many plants in different quantity and used in different forms by people reaches to a person’s brain with in a few seconds and spread over to other body parts in phases. The nicotine has its reach to the milk of a mother and leaves its bad effects there to teach to the child being breastfed. The carbon monoxide effects in worst way by reaching to red blood cells and the effects on hemoglobin that is responsible for proper intake/supply of oxygen to our body.
Smoke of cigarette containing nicotine and carbon monoxide disturbs and increases the rate of heart and blood pressure, which causes extra pressure on arteries carrying blood and heart to damage the heart gradually. Carcinogen, the content responsible for cancer is most harmful for genes the working sub units of DNA of different cells in our body parts making them defective and multiplies in faster rate than normal. Smoking cigarettes only increase the rate of defects already developed during the pregnancy due to smoking habits in shape of defective genes of the DNA. Smoking creates greater risk due to change in DNA as the oxidative stresses increment cause atherosclerosis, the blockage of arteries ultimately damaging lungs as well.
Another major problem created by smoking habits appears in form of lack of antioxidants in blood those are mainly responsible for repair of the cells of the body constantly. Smoking can cause at least 25 fatal diseases in a human body including heart attack, stroke, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchitis, different types of cancers including lungs, mouth, food pipe, sinus, Voice box, throat especially upper part, nose, liver, pancreas, breast cancer etc.
How to get rid of smoking
Most people think that smoking reduces stress levels, that is not true as I know that with my personal experience who smoked for over twenty years and suddenly quitting almost eight years before ever touching it even for a single time once quitted smoking. The fact is as the diseases increase due to smoking the same take the reverse rout once you quit, the stresses and diseases become lesser dangerous as the effects lessens or at least the process of increasing of diseases either stops or slowed down to great extent. Here are some simple and effective ways those may help in quitting smoking without much of efforts, try these-
A- The first and foremost step to quit is to take a decision, find an excuse to do so or ask some one to remind you if you reach for a cigarette. In my case, I owe it to my daughter who told me to choose between her and cigarette.
B- You must use your willpower as your most effective tool in quitting a bad habit particularly smoking which is an addictive and hard to go if you give it a second chance.
C- Some persons have associated smoking with their other habits, as they cannot go to toilet without smoking in there or before going to ease them
D- Make sure your smoking habit is not stress reliever but gives you more stress in the end.
E- Nicotine therapy is another way if one cannot quit with his own efforts nor have not enough will power.
Nicotine therapy
Nicotine therapy is useful for the persons who fail to quit despite their best efforts. Tobacco intake is reduced with every dose while under the therapy that consists of use of substitutes of nicotine like patches, nicotine gum, nicotine aerosol and inhaler consisting of nicotine minus its poisonous contents. The quantity reduced gradually helps a person come to normal stage with no smoking habit, once quit it depends on that particular person to remain quit. The Chinese acupuncture is another way of getting rid of smoking habit although not very popular in our country.
One should know
- Almost 20% men and 5% women die due to tobacco in the world.
- Despite all the benefits of quitting only 2% people quit successfully
- Life span of a smoker is almost 10 years lesser than that of a non smoker
- Smoking is the worst reason of different cancers, lungs problems, tuberculosis and heart diseases
- Smoking is the cause of 10% deaths in our country that makes it almost 9,00,000 per year
- Deaths caused by cancer last year reached to almost 120,000.
Cigarette smoking is injurious to your health
This is not only the warning written on packets of cigarettes but also a fact. A person smoking more than five cigarettes a day is at a greater health risk since his immune system becomes ineffective largely. Body capacity of absorbing iron reduces that shows signs of fatigue and weakness. Cigarette smoking reduces vitamin C from the system thus making the antioxidants at lower level and more risk of osteoporosis. To get rid of smoking habit this is better to increase consumption of fruits, keep body hydrated by drinking enough water and fruit juices, increase intake of vitamin B complex by drinking milk, butter milk yogurt etc. and a regular exercise is always helpful to regain your vigor
Let me finish here with a warning and data of the death due to smoking
This would be in public interest to let readers know the number of deaths caused by smoking is as per following, the deaths caused by passive smoking may add to stats and could make it more than double-
Heart patients 380,000
Bronchitis 165,000
Asthma 37,000
Lungs cancer 21,400