Quit Smoking

People start smoking because of influence from peers or from advertisement. Unfortunately, smoking is very addictive because:

0 When nicotine reaches the brain, it makes the head spin, and people feel stimulated and alert.

0 Nicotine makes the heart beats faster, so more blood circulates around the body per minute. This makes the user feel full of energy.

0 Nicotine reduces tension in muscles, which make people feel relaxed, it seems to reduce stress.
0 Nicotine seems to help people work by improving concentration, It can put off boredom and fatigue.

Addiction to most the common and the vicious of all drug addictions. The tragedy is that smoking is not legal, but also a multi billion industry, supported by industry and governments worldwide. This despite the fact there is nothing good about cigarette smoking, it is one sad story, as we we will see. Although cigarette smoking harms pregnant women and the foetus, only about 20 per cent of women who smoke quit during pregnancy. That it is why it is important that you quit the habit way before you become pregnant.

Smoking facts
0 There are over 3000 toxic chemicals in cigarette smoke
0 Smoking stops your blood from absorbing oxygen properly.
0 The same kind of tar used to make roads is contained in tobacco smoke.
0 The most dangerous of tar is nitroso chemical; one part per billion in food is a hazard: In tobacco smoke there are 5000 parts per billion.
0 The other chemicals inherited from tobacco include ammonia, a chemical founds in explosives, bleach and lavatory cleaners, and cyanide, which is deadly poison.

Effects on your baby

Weight: The most consistent effect of smoking on the foetus during pregnancy is a reduction in birth weight. The more a woman smokes during pregnancy the less the baby is likely to weigh. The average birth weight of babies born to women who smoke during pregnancy is significantly lower than that of babies born-to women who do not smoke. The reduction in birth weight seems to be greater among babies of older smokers.

Defects: Birth defects of the heart, brain and face are more common among babies of smokers than among those of none smokers.

Pregnancy complications: A mis-located placenta (placenta previa), premature detachment of the placenta, premature rupture of membranes, pre term labour, uterine infections, miscarriages, stillbirths and premature births are also more likely.

Slow development: Children of women who smoke have slight but measurable deficiencies in physical growth and in intellectual and behavioral development. These defects are thought to be caused by carbon monoxide, nicotine and other chemicals, some even unknown, found in cigarette smoke.

Carbon monoxide may reduce the oxygen supply to the body’s tissues. Nicotine stimulates the release of hormones that constrict the vessels supplying blood to the uterus and placenta, so that less oxygen and fewer nutrients reach the foetus. Pregnant women should equally avoid second hand smoke (released by other smokers) as it equally harms the foetus.

Effects on you

Lung cancer: Smoking causes lung cancer, which can result in death.

Heart disease: Nicotine makes the heart beat faster and raises your blood pressure-the end result can be a heart attack.

Stroke: Smoking makes the blood thick and more likely to clot. A clot in the brain’s blood vessels can mean permanent brain damage, paralysis, even death.

Gangrene: The blood can get so thick and sticky, that it blocks the small capillaries in the limbs. This could lead to gangrene (death and decomposition of body tissue) and sometimes affected limbs require amputation.

Bronchitis: Air passages may become clogged, narrow and damaged. This makes it difficult to breathe, and severe breathlessness can be crippling.

Cancers: Cancers of the mouth, throat, oesophagus. bladder, pancreas. kidneys. cervix and breast are all more common in smokers.

Ulcers: Smoking causes an increase in stomach acids, and you are more likely to get stomach and duodenal ulcers if you smoke.

Other effects: Cigarette smokers look older than their age because smoking speeds up ageing of the skin. The risk of premature death is double that of non-smokers. Smoking related diseases kill 40 per cent of smokers before they reach retirement. Non-smokers on average live six years longer than smokers.

Benefits of quitting

Giving up smoking has instant benefits. o Within 20 minutes of quitting. blood pres-sure and pulse rate fall.
o Within 2 hours lung airways relax. making it easier to breathe. and the volume of air your lungs can hold increases.
o Within 8 hours. carbon monoxide levels drop to normal, and the oxygen levels go back up to normal. o Within 24 hours. there is a significant reduction in the risk of a heart attack.
o Within 48 hours, damaged nerve endings start to regenerate, so the senses of smell and taste become stronger.
o Within 1-3 months. lung function and circulation of oxygen improve significantly. o Within 5 years. the risk of lung cancer reduces by half.
o Within 10 years, the risk of lung cancer is the same as that of a person who has never smoked.

To quit. you need to realise and accept that it is a dangerous habit, and convince yourself that you are healthier and wealthier when you do not smoke. Once you have decided to quit. you need someone to encourage you and monitor your progress. Only YOU can decide to quit.
Never give up.

END: PG20/10-11