() Comments
10 reasons to quit smoking
By Marci Laehr
1. Your health Smoking "really just sucks the life right out of you," said Dr. Paul Webber, a family practice physician at Aurora's Burlington clinic. He said smoking can cause lung cancer; leads to emphysema, which is irreversible; it is one of the very high risk factors for heart disease; can cause worsening of any respiratory problem, aggravate asthma, causes bronchitis and chronic recurrent sinusitis; causes peripheral vascular disease, which is associated with blockages in the legs; causes the formation of aneurysms; hardens the arteries which can lead to strokes and heart attacks; and aggravates hypertension by raising blood pressure. Smoking by pregnant women increases the risk of miscarriage, and increases the risk of having a low birth-weight baby.
2. You hurt others around you
Webber said that a good majority of the children he sees at the clinic who have recurring colds and ear infections, also have parents who smoke. He said second-hand smoke causes many of the same diseases and problems smoking does. It can even cause lung cancer because of the tars and pollutants released during smoking 3. Smoking is an expensive habit The average cost of a pack of Marlboro cigarettes is about $3.50. For someone who smokes a pack a day the cost is $24.50 for a week and $1,274 per year.
4. Your children will smoke According to studies, children who live with smokers are two to three times more likely to smoke than children who live with
5. You look old before your time "(Smoking) increasing wrinkling," Webber said. "It ages your skin more rapidly."
6. You smell An anti-smoking Web site, www.safework.ca, says cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 chemical compounds. When those are burned, it causes the stink. Two-thirds of the smoke from a burning cigarette is not inhaled by the smoker, but enters into the surrounding environment. It gets into your hair, clothes, on your skin, into your furniture, the walls of your home, curtains, carpet, you car, and everywhere else you smoke.
8. It's a fire hazard The National Fire Protection Association said cigarettes, pipes and other smoking materials are the leading cause of fire deaths and the third leading cause of fire injuries in the United States. Roughly one of every four fire deaths in the 1999 was attributed to smoking.
9. It physically restricts you You're able to do less physically, such as participate in sports or even climb the stairs because of respiratory problems caused by smoking.
10. No one wants to kiss you The bottom line is smoking gives you bad breath, and no one wants to talk to someone, much less kiss them, if they have bad breath.
Special Offer: Get 5 Weeks of the Journal Times for $7!
|
 |
|
| Local briefs, 12-24-03 | Area jobless rate declines |
