Here are some great reasons to quit smoking that will strengthen your resolve to quit this dangerous habit for good.
According to tobaccofree maine.org, ‘one can experience the benefits of not using tobacco within 20 minutes of quitting, and as your tobacco-free days accumulate, the benefits will accumulate, too.’ Now isn’t that inspiring? Quitting smoking is the best thing a smoker can do to preserve a healthy body and mind; yes it’s not easy to kick the lethal addiction, but we give you some strong reasons to call in the cold turkey. Read on to push yourself to the next level of commitment to quit smoking.
Save money
On an average a smoker spends more than Rs. 2000 per month on cigarettes alone. With prices going up every day, one will be shelling out more than this. Don’t forget the host of medical appointments and treatments you need regularly because of smoking – bronchial infections, coughs, breath mints, extra deodorant use to mask the smell, etc. All of this costs money.
And the medical costs of smoking are astronomical! Even if you have insurance, your health-care costs as a smoker are likely way ahead than that of a nonsmoker. So rather than spending 120 bucks everyday or Rs. 21,600 every year save that money and you will be smiling on a rainy day!
Trouble in your bedroom
Nicotine is a vasoconstrictor, which means it has a narrowing effect on the arteries. So it’s harder for the heart to pump blood through the narrowed arteries, and this effects your body’s pleasure controls. You will face difficulties in feeling aroused.
A study looking at the impact smoking has on a man’s ability to get an erection was recently presented at the American Heart Association’s annual conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention in Miami. The study highlighted that men who smoked more than 20 cigarettes daily had a 60% higher risk of erectile dysfunction, compared to men who never smoked.
In fact 15% of the past and present smokers had experienced erectile dysfunction.
Sleep Troubles
A study that appeared in the 2008 (February) issue of Chest, journal of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), revealed that smokers spend less time in deep sleep and more time in light sleep than nonsmokers. They also show the greatest differences in sleep patterns in the early stages of sleep. This was as a result of nicotine withdrawals every night.
Weak bones
As reported by webmd.com in 2001, Edward N. Hanley Jr., MD, chairman of the department of orthopedic surgery at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, N.C. looked at work-related injuries and smoking. He found that 50% of smokers suffered from low back pain, compared with only 20% of nonsmokers.
To add to their woes smokers always complain of cramps in their legs and perennial back pains. Nicotine also hampers healing of fractures and estrogen effectiveness. Non smokers tend to have stronger bones than smokers.
Women smokers have been found to lose 2.3% to 3.3% of bone mineral density for every 10 pack-years of tobacco use. The effects are even worse in postmenopausal women.
Ears Ringing
Nicotine again!! It lowers the circulation of blood to the structure of your ears resulting in Tinnitus or ringing of ears. Rather, keep your ears healthy and enjoy good music and happy conversations.
Smokers have a nearly 70% greater likelihood of developing hearing loss than nonsmokers.
Kill Pill
It is a toxic mix! Oral contraceptives are not recommended for smokers because oral contraceptives carry a risk of clots, heart attacks, and strokes. Anyone who smokes more than 15 cigarettes a day should be very careful about using birth control pills. The risks increase for women who are over 35 years of age and for those who smoke a great deal.
According to Randy Fink, MD, Director of the Center of Excellence for Obstetrics & Gynecology in Miami, “Women who are current smokers on birth control have an 8.8-fold higher risk for having a blood clot than nonsmoking women not on birth control.”
HIV to AIDS Risk
HIV-positive patients who smoke, have a faster progression time to AIDS than non smokers, since smoking impairs the lungs, making them more vulnerable to infection and affects the immunity of the body.
Studies have also found that cigarette smoking significantly increases the likelihood and rate of developing mouth sores, oral hairy leukoplakia (whitish sore on the side of the tongue and inside cheeks) and bacterial pneumonia in smokers with HIV.
Heart Risk, Heart Attacks and Cancers
Smokers are at two to four times greater risk of developing coronary heart disease as nonsmokers. Cigarette smokers with coronary heart disease are also at twice the risk for sudden cardiac death as nonsmokers with coronary heart disease.
Plus you have higher rates of many types of cancer, including bladder cancer, lung cancer and throat cancer.
Brighten your teeth
All those tobacco stains look very bad every time a smoker smiles, and then you spend a fortune to get them back to their glory. Just kick the butt and you save a lot of time and money.
Psoriasis
Studies have shown that daily smoking can lead to psoriasis. The higher the number of cigarettes over 20 smoked per day, the greater that risk. A study conducted in February 2012 revealed that smokers have an increased risk of developing the chronic skin condition psoriasis.
Of nearly 186,000 men and women followed for 12 to 20 years, 2,410 developed psoriasis during that time. And the risk was greater among both current smokers and former smokers. People who were current smokers at the study’s start were almost twice as likely as lifelong non-smokers to develop psoriasis. And past smokers had a 39 percent higher risk than non-smokers.
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