Great American Smokeout
November 16, 2017November is the month of the Great American Smokeout. Ubiquitously understood everywhere, smoking is bad for you. The media has used the last century to turn the romanticized version of smoking cigarettes as “cool” to be equated now as an “early death”. People used to use the excuse that they didn’t know cigarettes were bad until after they had been smoking for years. Perplexingly, smoking used to be common enough that it was allowed to be done in restaurants, malls, and even hospitals.With all of the information distributed amongst schools, and communities on the health risks of smoking, it is now considered a social faux pas to smoke. Even the dangers of second hand smoke are considered far too risky to be around.
The dangers of smoking are real, and have a myriad amount of studies to support these truths. Tobacco use is still the leading cause of preventable deaths. The carcinogens in cigarettes and tobacco products compromises pulmonary function and is linked to emphysema, COPD, mouth, esophageal, and lung cancers; birth defects and developmental problems.
There are more than a laundry list of reasons to quite smoking. Some take their health personally, or the health of their family members into account. For some, it is a financial burden, especially when the government is raising taxes on tobacco products in hopes that people will stop buying them. And unfortunately for most of the people who quit, it is because they have already had their health compromised.
Take the step today to stop smoking. There are many proven ways to quit smoking, and millions of people have succeeded. Some ways to quit smoking are to quit cold turkey, intermittently reduce the number of cigarettes smoked a day, and replace your addiction with exercise or a new hobby.
Are you a former smoker or someone who has dealt personally with a smoker? Please comment below if you can tell us about these experiences. Are you going to join the efforts of the Great American Smokeout?