Smoking

• What is secondary or passive smoking?
• The effects/impacts of smoking 
• What damage do cigarettes do to your health?
• Benefits of Stopping Smoking
• Help with quitting
• Eating healthy
• Useful contact information

There are over 4000 highly toxic chemicals released into the atmosphere each time someone lights a cigarette. A smoker can inhale almost all of these fumes and through secondhand smoke (passive smoking) everyone is at risk but not always aware of being exposed to the smoke as, 85% of this you cannot see or smell.

What is secondary or passive smoking?

Passive smoking is breathing in second-hand tobacco smoke from the air. Less than three out of 10 adults smoke but nearly everyone at times is breathing in secondary smoke. It is not only a nuisance and a cause of discomfort but can also affect your health.

The effects / impacts of smoking

Smoking causes around 22 per cent of all deaths from lung cancer, 83 per cent of all deaths from bronchitis and emphysema and around 25 per cent of all deaths from heart disease.

 The short-term effects of smoking include:

•  Gum disease and bad breath,
•  Becoming more susceptibility to colds and flu,
•  Stained fingers,
•  Clothes and hair smelling of smoke.

 Long-term effects include:

•  At high risk from getting mouth and throat cancer
•  Poor circulation in arms and legs. 

What damage do cigarettes do to your health?

The health effects of smoking:

• Cancer 
  Many studies have shown smoking can cause lung cancer.
   
• Heart disease and vascular diseases (diseases of the arteries)
  Smoking increases the risk of strokes and, you are at higher risk as a smoker of dying from heart disease.
   
• Effects on children who live with parents that smoke 
  They can have frequent chest infections and coughs or conditions of the ear called glue ear, which can cause deafness. They can also develop asthma or if they suffer from this it can become worse.
   
• Tips to help prevent conditions in children who live with parents who smoke
  Smoke outside whenever possible or in one room away from children or babies. Keep rooms well ventilated and try keeping babies and children out of smoky atmospheres.

Benefits of Stopping Smoking 

Around 70% of smokers say they want to stop smoking, with the new smoke free law in place there is extra motivation to stop smoking. From the moment you give up there are immediate benefits. You will gain a better sense of smell and your taste buds will become stronger - treating yourself to that bar of chocolate or ice cream will seem even better!

Benefits of giving up:

As well as improving your own health and wellbeing, you can improve the lifestyle of everyone around you!

Not only will you give yourself a chance to lead a healthier life you could also earn big cash prizes. The sooner you enter the greater financial benefit you will receive. These prizes are not dependant on luck or chance but can be guaranteed by YOU! Within one year of giving up you could save £2002 enough to enjoy an exotic holiday! In five years you can save £10010 and over ten years you will have gained £20020 that dream car could be yours!

(Based on a packet of 20 cigarettes costing £5.50, smoking 20 a day).

The table below can be used to help you keep track of how much money you have saved to treat yourself. Write down what you would like to treat yourself with prior to this to keep you motivated whilst giving up.

Help with quitting

Reading this far is a big achievement as you have already taken the time to think about giving up smoking, why stop now.

If you feel tempted to have a cigarette look at it for extra motivation, encouragement and to remind yourself why you decided to give up.

Keeping a smoking diary prior to giving up could help you identify the main reasons and temptations within your daily life that prompt you to having a cigarette. An idea is to keep a smoking diary for five days. Write down every occasion you have a cigarette recording the time, what you were doing, why you think you needed it. An example is below:

Each day you can look at your diary to try and identify if there are any patterns that occur when you feel you need a cigarette (i.e. when you wake up in the morning and have a cup of tea), the sort of activities that make you need a cigarette and if having a cigarette made you feel better.

There are many services that provide free support to help you give up smoking. The people around you, friends and family are also able to encourage you along the way. You could get them involved, for example getting them to sponsor you, to give you extra motivation to suceed. Good luck!

Eating Healthy

When giving-up smoking it is important to think about your diet and what you are eating. Following these few tips below could help you see and feel more benefits to giving up smoking. 

• Keep an eye on what you eat and try to avoid high calorie and fried foods. An example could be to substitute ice cream for frozen yogurt for a healthier way to treat yourself.
• Eat at regular times throughout the day.
• Keep healthy snacks and water easily available. If you have some fruit for example grapes or strawberries near you, each time you feel the need to have a cigarette keep your hands busy picking fruit. Not only will you be tackling the urge for a cigarette you will also be feeding your body with those much needed five-a-day necessities.
• When you go food shopping take a list with you and stick to it. Doing this gives you a chance to think about what you will be eating and limits those little things ‘accidentally jumping’ into the shopping trolley.

Find out ways to add healthy eating to your diet.

Useful contact information:

• British Heart Foundation  Smoking Helpline 0800 169 1 900
• NHS Smoking Helpline: 0800 169 0 169 (lines are open daily from 7am to 11pm).
• Your local GP, Practice Nurse or Pharmacist.