I Can Quit!

As nicotine addicts, we all had our list of excuses and rationalizations to use this drug. We may have believed that using was simply a choice we made. Nicotine addiction is powerful and cunning. It interferes with our thinking, so using it becomes an irrational, compelling response to any and all experiences.

Over time, we discover the truth: Nicotine will not solve a single problem. With recovery we learn healthier and more effective options than using nicotine. The more we work on our recovery, the more we accept that smoking is not an option anymore.

Young adults, ages 18-24, are among the most targeted groups when it comes to tobacco use. According to Bacchus and Gamma, smoking just 4 cigarettes can give a person a 90% chance of becoming addicted. In fact, 31% of college students use tobacco and half of them would like to quit. The Tobacco Technical Assistance Consortium noted that at the current rates, an estimated 1 out of 9 college student’s will die of a tobacco-related illness. The Indiana Tobacco Quitline can help you break your dependency on tobacco products. Call today at 1-800-QUIT-NOW! Your questions will be answered you will be given suggestions for the best way to quit.

Quitting smoking is the biggest step you can take toward improving your health and the health of your family. The Indiana Tobacco Quitline can help! This FREE telephone-based quit tobacco resource is available to all Hoosiers. Simply call 1-800-QUIT-NOW or 1-800-784-8669 from 8 am to midnight, 7 days-a-week to talk to a trained Quit Coach.

By quitting smoking, you will dramatically reduce your risk of cancer, lung disease, emphysema and other tobacco-related diseases. Plus, your family’s risk of lung cancer, heart disease, and other health problems caused by exposure to secondhand smoke will be greatly reduced.

You’re not alone. Seventy percent (70%) of current U.S. smokers report that they want to quit completely! For many smokers, quitting takes practice! So, don’t be discouraged if you’ve tried before and been unsuccessful. It takes an average of 7 to 11 attempts for many smokers to quit completely. When you call the Indiana Tobacco Quitline, you will talk with a trained Quit Coach who has helped hundreds of people quit and understands what you’re going through. If you are ready to quit, you and your Quit Coach can work out a customized quitting plan, which includes a practical counseling session and a quit kit. You may also be encouraged to contact your physician for smoking cessation medications or be referred to smoking cessation support programs in your community. Call 1-800-QUIT-NOW to free yourself of tobacco.

With all the smoke-free laws going into effect, many people think they can safely switch to a smokeless form of tobacco. Don’t be fooled. Smokeless tobacco is NOT a safe alternative to smoking.

You can call it what you want — smokeless tobacco, spit tobacco, snus, chew, snuff, pinch, plug or dip — but don’t call it harmless. If you’re considering making the switch from cigarettes to chewing tobacco because you think the smokeless version of tobacco won’t hurt you, be forewarned — chewing tobacco also causes serious health problems.

Using smokeless tobacco products can cause serious health problems, from gum irritation to oral cancer. It also increases your heart rate and blood pressure and puts you at a greater risk of heart attack.

If you aren’t convinced that chewing tobacco, spit tobacco and other forms of smokeless tobacco aren’t risk-free, consider the words of someone who’s seen the damage tobacco can do. Joe Garagiola, a former spit tobacco user, played major league baseball and later worked in broadcasting. After retiring from baseball he became a crusader against spit tobacco — the term he prefers since “smokeless” makes tobacco sound harmless.

“I chewed tobacco because it seemed to be the thing to do if you were playing baseball,” says Garagiola. “Everybody chewed when I was playing, and nobody knew the dangers of it.” But he’s seen the dangers since, losing three close friends to oral cancer and seeing the harmful effects of spit tobacco on other people.

“You won’t die of gum disease or yellow teeth, but develop oral cancer and it’s a terrible way to go,” Garagiola says. “Here you are with oral cancer from using spit tobacco, your jaw has been removed and you have to eat through a tube. You die one piece at a time. Spit tobacco is a horrible, horrible thing. I just wish I could get this message across to everyone.”

Set a date to quit. Think of healthy ways to deal with cravings. Know that cravings typically last only a few minutes. Drinking water, eating licorice, chewing gum, going for a walk or calling a friend can help you get through them. And the interval between cravings increases the longer you’ve stopped using tobacco and eventually the cravings will go away.

Remember, it’s never too late to quit. For help, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW, or go to www.indianatobaccoquitline.net.

I came across the following about how your body starts repairing itself after you quit smoking and thought I’d share it:

What happens after you quit smoking?

20 MINUTES

·        Blood pressure drops to normal

·        Pulse rate drop to normal

·        Body temperature of hands and feet increase to normal

8 HOURS

·        Carbon monoxide level in blood drops to normal

·        Oxygen level in blood increases to normal

24 HOURS

·        Chance of heart attack decreases

48 HOURS

·        Nerve endings start re-growing

·        Ability to smell and taste is enhanced

2 WEEKS TO 3 MONTHS

·        Circulation improves

·        Walking becomes easier

·        Lung function increases up to 30 percent

1 TO 9 MONTHS

·        Coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, and shortness of breath decrease

·        Cilia re-grow in lungs, increasing their ability to handle mucus, clean the lungs, and reduce infection

·        Body’s overall energy increases

1 YEAR

·        Excess risk of coronary heart disease if half that of a smoker

5 YEARS

·        Lung-cancer death rate for average former smoker (1 pack a day) decreases by almost half

·        Stroke risk is reduced to that of a non-smoker 5 to 15 years after quitting

·        Risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, and esophagus is half that of a smoker’s

10 YEARS

·        Lung cancer death rate is similar to that of a non-smoker

·        Precancerous cells are replaced

·        Risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, cervix, and pancreas decreases

15 YEARS

·        Risk of coronary heart disease is that of a non-smoker