Smoking Facts and Tips to Quit

Tips to Help You Quit Smoking for Good
Smokers are three times more likely to die of heart disease. Smoking damages the cardiovascular system, causes emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and 90% of all lung cancers among smokers in the U.S.

Consider the other risks: cancers of the esophagus, mouth, throat, the kidneys, bladder, and pancreas. Toxins from cigarettes go everywhere the blood flows.

Smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in this country. It kills more than 400,000 Americans every year—and that's more than AIDS, alcohol, automobile accidents, illicit drugs, homicides, suicides, all combined.

On average, it can take smokers three to six attempts to quit. The CDC suggests five steps:
* Get ready
* Get support
* Learn new skills and behaviors
* Get medication and use it correctly
* Be prepared for difficult situations

Second-Hand Smoke
Beyond consideration of your own health, second-hand smoke can be very dangerous for your family, friends, and co-workers. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency includes second-hand smoke among "Group A" carcinogens. That means there is sufficient evidence to conclude that it causes cancer in humans. Children are especially vulnerable to second-hand smoke. Exposure to smoke as a child can slow the development of lung function, and children of parents who smoke have more problems with respiratory symptoms and infections than children of non-smokers. Second-hand smoke is responsible for nearly two million doctor visits a year for coughs in children and an additional 529,000 for asthma. So keeping your home smoke-free is a great gift you can give your child.

To learn more about the facts about smoking and cancer, contact the American Cancer Society through its web site or at (800) ACS-2345.

From: http://www.accenthealth.com/features/quitsmoking/