I've decided to take up smoking.

Qonas.

Thing is, is that we all know that stuff now. Heck, even if I didn't know any of that the way older people claim that 20 years ago there wasn't all this "information" about smoking, I'd still know smoking is bad.

If a person doesn't have the brains to realize that by taking smoke into your lungs you are harming your body, then they have more important issues than smoking.

Point being, that some of those statistics and "facts" are just scare tactics. Just like they do in school. I remember teachers and people coming into school when I was younger and telling us that marijuana will make your heart explode.

My point is that people look down on smokers when they have no right to do so. We are all guilty of something and never have any right to point a finger at anyone.

 

When smokers quit, within twenty minutes of smoking that last cigarette the body begins a series of changes.

At 20 minutes after quitting:


blood pressure decreases

pulse rate drops

body temperature of hands and feet increases

At 8 hours:

carbon monoxide level in blood drops to normal

oxygen level in blood increases to normal

At 24 hours:

chance of a heart attack decreases

At 48 hours:

nerve endings start regrowing

ability to smell and taste is enhanced

The first year after quitting:

At 2 weeks to 3 months:

circulation improves

walking becomes easier

lung function increases

1 to 9 months:

coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, shortness of breath decreases

1 year:

excess risk of coronary heart disease is decreased to half that of a smoker

Long-term Benefits of Quitting

At 5 years:

from 5 to 15 years after quitting, stroke risk is reduced to that of people who have never smoked.

At 10 years:

risk of lung cancer drops to as little as one-half that of continuing smokers

risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas decreases

risk of ulcer decreases

At 15 years:

risk of coronary heart disease is now similar to that of people who have never smoked

risk of death returns to nearly the level of people who have never smoked

 

You mean smoking is bad for me? <gasp>













*cough*

 

My nerve endings are nothing but trouble. The deserve everything they get.

 

Anyways, all this talk about not smoking reminds me that I do in fact smoke and am indeed craving one.

So, I'll continue dismantling all your arguements later. (that was a joke)

 

Introduction
In survey after survey, the vast majority of smokers say they would like to stop ? the most recent national survey found that 72% of smokers said this. The reasons given traditionally relate to health impacts, rising costs and the growing inconvenience of smoking. Many smokers expressing these views also report having tried to stop in the past, but many others persist for several years as unhappy smokers before being able to stop. A new survey for No Smoking Day has examined this phenomenon in more depth, measuring the extent of smokers? regrets about starting smoking and probing the underlying reasons. The results portray a group of deeply unhappy consumers, many of whom transfer their feelings of disgust about their smoking onto themselves. The research suggests that, far from helping smokers feel confident, cool and composed, as cigarette manufacturers aspire, smoking makes people feel down, dowdy and distressed.
Summary
? 83% of smokers say they would not smoke if they had their time again
? Women are significantly more likely than men to regret ever smoking (87% vs. 79%)
? The reasons why smokers regret starting fall mainly into 5 categories: Health, Expense, Addiction, Disgust and Stigma.
? Younger smokers are significantly more likely than older smokes to cite Addiction as their main regret.
? The poorest smokers are least likely to cite Expense as a reason for regret
? Women tend to give more reasons than men, and are more likely than men to express concern about Addiction and Disgust
? Despite the frequency with which Health and Expense concerns are mentioned, the mild manner in which they are usually expressed suggests that smokers may be downplaying those issues while feeling the more emotional effects more deeply
? The extent, range and depth of smokers? regrets about starting could, with sensitivity, be explored as powerful motivators in cessation interventions
The study method
Data were gathered from 2 waves of the ONS Omnibus Survey in Great Britain during October and November 2001, yielding responses from 846 smokers . All of those smokers were asked: ?If you had your time again, would you start smoking?? All who answered ?no? was asked: ?Why is that?? and responses were recorded verbatim.

Responses were analysed for their general content and 5 clear themes emerged. Responses were then individually classified into these themes by three judges, among whom agreement was very good. Variations in responses were examined by age, sex and socio-economic status ? the indicator variable for socio-economic status was created by combining information on housing tenure, access to a car and educational qualifications.
Results
The extent of regrets
It is clear that starting smoking is something that is widely regretted. To gauge smokers? overall feelings in this respect, respondents were first asked whether, if they had their time again, they would start smoking. The response pattern is shown in Table 1.
Table 1: If you had your time over again, would you start smoking?
Sex Age range Socio-economic group
Total
M F 16-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60+ 0 1 2 3
% % % % % % % % % % % %
Yes 10 12 8 11 10 9 4 11 10 8 9 12
No 83 79 87 82 81 86 91 79 82 86 85 78
Don?t know 7 9 5 7 8 4 5 10 7 6 5 11

The response pattern was remarkably similar across age and socio-economic groups but the main significant difference was across the sexes: women were significantly more likely than men to regret ever smoking (87% vs. 79%).

It is interesting to note that younger smokers, who might be expected to be more contented smokers as a result of discounting future health impacts, were just as likely to express regret as older smokers. It appears then that smoking-related discontent sets in early in the smoking years. As few smokers quit before middle age, it appears that smoking is causing millions of smokers to spend many years enduring lowered self-esteem ? a neglected side-effect of smoking.
The roots of regret
The 83% of smokers who said they would not start smoking again were asked to give reas

 

Hmmm... I've never heard all of those facts before. Qonas has convinced me. I'm going to quit starting smoking.

 

Is anybody actually reading this stuff? Hell, Qonas, are you actually reading it? It looks like you ran a search and just started copy and pasting.

 

I'm going to quit starting smoking.

We're so proud of you, gundark.



*cough* cop-out *cough*

 

I guess I better have a smoke break before I read all that cut & pasted material.

Still, the funny thing is, you can be the healthiest person you know, yet still get killed in an automobile accident.

I guess I better quit driving too.

 

Guns, dont listen to him smoking can be the best thing in your life, you will die before your dog (since you have no kids) can put you in a old age home and live off all the money you earned in your lifetime while you get to sit sedated in a bed with adult diapers on.

Smoking, will make your last days happy with them not being there!

 

The only thing worse than being an addict is being a jerk who can't follow through. For the good of the JC I demand that you start smoking, Gundark!

 

tl,dr.


?Eaglet

 

Don't listen to these unhealthy malcontents, Qonas. I appreciate the fact that you're so concerned about my health. I was wondering if maybe you'd like to go out and get a drink sometime. You know... just kind of see what happens?

 

That's not funny. I got drunk once and peed in a snowbank.

 

Author: Uthaman (193.188.161.---)
Date: 03-13-02 07:08

I feel wonderfully relaxed in just 2 weeks of quitting..no wheezing and improved breathing capacity.. smells good all around me. worried for the damage inflicted to my lungs all these years and blame myself for starting it in the first place.
Author: Gareth
Date: 03-13-02 15:35

I have stopped for 6 days and consider it to be a triumph. I have been worried constantly in regard to the damage to my health. I am 33 and have experienced breathlessness for the past year which resulted in a referral for a lung function test.

I find it incredible that we are in the 21st Century and that smoking is a legal drug coupled with the fact that the Government earns money from peoples addiction! Immoral and Disgusting!!!!!!!
Author: melanie
Date: 03-21-02 04:21

I'm not sure its ever as simple as finding a replacement or having willpower. I've been smoking for four years now. I gave up nine years ago for 5 whole years and considered myself to be an ex-smoker, then out of sheer perversity I took a drag of someones cig after a stressful but successful day. Now I cough all the time, I don't sleep as well as I used to and my partner nags me all the time. I smoke only in the kitchen and he won't sit in the same room while I do it - which is fair enough. My relationship with cigs is very much a love-hate one. Love, not just because its an addiction but because it satisfies that insidiously self-destructive part of my psyche. Its absolutely masochistic and when I go through period of low self esteem or worry I smoke more. I'm sure there is a remnant of that teenage 'up yours' attitude to life and others and my sensible self that propels my smoking habit. as someone who knows a fair bit about psychology and psychoanalysis the more i think about it, the more it seems to me that smoking is a symptom of a more obscure inbalance. like over-eating or anorexia its causes are deep rooted ones.
Author: hazel (195.172.78.---)
Date: 03-21-02 18:54

melanie, i went through the same stop /start tragedy as you have. you said that it is a love/hate thing and it has something to do with your rebellious and self-destructive side. for me, cigs were more of a panacea. oh, it would be alright as soon as a have a puff . even the trip at the most ridiculous hour and awfuly condition to get cigs is the beginning of the consolation that cigarettes are supposed to offer. so for me, cigs were a love/love object, and a balm to all my worries. i hope you will be able to stop again and this time for good.

Gundark, that'd be hard since according to your bio you live in Uzbekistan while I'm an American.

 

Gundark lives in Uzbekistan?

 

gundarks are known to tell half truths.

 

Maybe if I quit smoking, I'll live long enough to take up skydiving, king crab fishing, or better yet...becoming a convenience store clerk.

 

I vote for convenience store clerk.



[Apu]

 

Nicotine is a drug that is found in the tobacco leaf. It has never been found in any other plant or material. It is highly addictive and, to tobacco companies, it's gold - in fact, it's the only reason they exist. Last year tobacco companies made over 165 BILLION dollars and every last penny was made directly because of nicotine.
Tobacco companies are so sure that their money depends on nicotine that they actually started adding stuff to cigarettes - stuff like ammonia, a chemical which makes the nicotine even MORE addictive. A little ammonia here and there and these big guys have you wrapped around their finger - maybe forever.

When you take a draw on a cigarette, the nicotine, hidden in the smoke, goes straight into your lungs and then out into your blood. It reaches your brain in 7 seconds flat. And that's when the trouble starts... You get a "hit" - your brain likes the feel and it wants more. You need another drag. Your brain demands it. You need another cigarette like you need your next breath. The more nicotine your brain gets, the more it wants. Your body starts going into withdrawal when it doesn't get its fix... Shakes. Headaches. Sweating. Anxiety. Basically, you feel like HELL. Welcome to the world of addiction! The Tobacco Industry's got you.

Did you know smoking has been known to cause all these diseases and conditions, plus many more?
For a close up view, click on links.

arteriosclerosis
asthma
black lung
bleeding during pregnancy
cataracts
cerebrovascular disease
cervical cancer
chronic airway obstruction
chronic bowel disease
chronic bronchitis
colorectal cancer
coronary heart disease
cough
decreased physical endurance
emphysema
esophageal cancer
fertility problems
gangrene
impotence
impotence
impotence
impotence
impotence
increased phlegm
kidney cancer
larynx cancer
loss of limbs
low birthweight babies
leukemia lip cancer
lung cancer
menstrual disorders
miscarriage
mouth cancer
nicotine addiction
osteoporosis
pancreatic cancer
peptic ulcers
periodontal disease
peripheral vascular disease
pharyngeal cancer
placental abnormalities
pneumonia
premature menopause
reduced lung function
skin wrinkling
sleep disturbance
smoker's palette
stillbirth
sudden infant death syndrome
thyroid disease
tooth loss and decay
urinary bladder cancer
wheezing

 

I have good english for Uzbeki, no?

 

Wow, impotence is listed FIVE times!


[Error: Only 1 message post per minute is allowed.]

 

click on links.


I cant! I keep trying to click on it and it doesnt work!

your copying and pasting is sucking considering the links dont work.

 

Wheezing is all the rage in New York. It's the new Hammer pants.