Šalje: QuitSmokingTips [bwprice@quitsmokingsupport.com] Poslano: 27. travanj 2001 2:58 Prima: List Member Predmet: QuitSmokingTips - Volume 3 Number 19 QuitSmokingTips - http://www.quitsmokingsupport.com --------------------------- ListBot Sponsor -------------------------- Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com/links/joinlb ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ..................................................................... Thursday April 26, 2001 *** Volume 3 Number 19 *** ..................................................................... ...IN THIS ISSUE... 1 What's New on QuitSmokingSupport.com 2. Why do smokers fail to quit? 3. What Should Smokers Do Until They Quit? ````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSORS: ---------------------------- Quit Smoking with the help of an artificial cigarette. 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What's New on QuitSmokingSupport.com Check out our list of quitting smoking counters at: http://www.quitsmokingsupport.com/counters.htm Our quitting smoking bulletin board is one of the most popular quit smoking support areas on the Internet!! Sign up at: http://network54.com/Hide/Forum/76750 Take part in some of our polls...the results may surprise you! http://www.quitsmokingsupport.com/polls.htm ```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` ========> 2. Why do smokers fail to quit? Although 25% of adults continue to smoke, about 70% of them want to quit. In one study, of the women smokers who said they wanted to stop smoking, 80% of them were unable to. Nicotine is a psychoactive drug, and some researchers feel it is as addictive as heroin; in fact, nicotine has actions similar to cocaine and heroin in the same area of the brain. Depending on the amount taken in, nicotine can act as either a stimulant or a sedative. Most smokers have a special fondness for the first cigarette of the day because of the way brain cells respond to the day's first nicotine rush. Rat studies show that nicotine increases the activity of dopamine, a chemical in the brain that elicits pleasurable sensations -- a feeling similar to achieving a reward. The first nicotine intake of the day is particularly effective in enhancing the activity of dopamine-sensitive neurons. During the day, however, the nerve cells become desensitized to nicotine; smoking becomes less pleasurable and smokers may be likely to increase their intake to get their "reward". A smoker develops tolerance to these effects very quickly and requires increasingly higher levels of nicotine. Withdrawal is a difficult process. Even after years of nonsmoking, about 20% of ex-smokers still have occasional cravings for cigarettes. A study in 1986 reported that 68% of all smokers wanted to quit, and in that year a third of them tried seriously, but only 6% of all smokers succeeded. People who keep trying, however, have a 50% chance of finally quitting, and in any case the attempts to quit are never a waste of time, since the amount of smoking is reduced during these periods. Researchers have been trying to discover those conditions or sets of behaviors that can help predict why so many people fail to quit. From one study to the next, however, no consistent factors have emerged; these include gender, number of cigarettes smoked, levels of nicotine in the blood, length of time smoked, or the intensity or severity of withdrawal. A 1994 study, however, did find one consistent predictor for failure to quit: almost anyone who cheated during the first two weeks of withdrawal, even if they were wearing the patch, was smoking again in six months. On the other hand, nearly half of the people who didn't cheat during the first two weeks were still not smoking after sixth months. A recent study indicates that smokers who quit and start again may damage their lungs even more severely than people who have not yet made an attempt to quit. Some experts suggest that those who relapse may have been at high risk for poor lung function in the first place or that those who start smoking again are more strongly addicted than other smokers and may inhale more deeply and hold the smoke in their lungs longer. The message here is not that quitting smoking is more dangerous than not quitting; the emphasis is on not starting again. ```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` ========> 3. What Should Smokers Do Until They Quit? It is so difficult to quit that smokers should never feel inadequate if they fail. In fact, self-recriminations and guilt only reinforce the low self-esteem and depression that helps cause smoking behavior in the first place. So the cycle continues. Everyone who smokes should simply assume that at some point they will be able quit, even if they have relapsed many times. Whether or not they can stop smoking, they should begin immediately to change any other behaviors that also might be damaging their health. If they aren't exercising, they should start after discussing an appropriate program with their physician. A recent study has found that regular exercise reduces a smoker's risk of heart disease -- although still not to the level of a nonsmoker. Exercise does not lower a smoker's risk for lung cancer or emphysema. Smokers should have their cholesterol and blood pressure checked regularly. They should also maintain healthy diet, with foods rich in B vitamins, the antioxidant vitamins E and C, and folic acid. Consumption of these vitamins and another antioxidant selenium appears to improve lung function. Even with a healthful diet, smoking reduces the levels of a number of vitamins, and, of particular importance, vitamin C. According to one study, daily vitamin E supplements reduces the risk for prostate cancer among smokers (although another found it did not reduce the risk for heart disease in smokers). A combination of these vitamins and other important disease-fighting nutrients -- not just single supplements -- are necessary for protection. Taking beta-carotene supplements alone, for instance, appears to increase the rate of lung cancer in smokers. Ideally, these nutrients and vitamins should be obtained in food, especially dark colored fruits and vegetables. Everyone, and especially people with a history of smoking, should avoid saturated fats and increase fiber intake. Two studies have indicated that eating fish more than twice a week might help limit the tobacco damage in people who are not heavy smokers (more than a pack and a half a day.) According to one study, taking vitamins during pregnancy might reduce the increased risk of fetal injury and death in women who smoke, although they do not eliminate that risk. Postmenopausal women who continue to smoke should take calcium to protect against osteoporosis. Smokers who have had a heart attack and are still smoking may dramatically reduce their risk for another heart attack by taking aspirin; aspirin also may have some protection against lung cancer, but long-time use can cause gastrointestinal bleeding. And every day people who smoke should try to cut back and consider quitting. ```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` The contents of this newsletter do not necessarily reflect the opinions of QuitSmokingSupport.com. We want this newsletter to be the best one around. If you have suggestions, ideas, or feedback about this newsletter, feel free to email us at support@quitsmokingsupport.com Please feel free to pass this newsletter along to anyone you know who may benefit from it! To unsubscribe to this newsletter, please go to http://www.listbot.com/ (c) Copyright 1995-2001 QuitSmokingSupport.com Take care and have a great week! Blair support@quitsmokingsupport.com QuitSmokingSupport.com http://www.quitsmokingsupport.com ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to quitsmokingtips-unsubscribe@listbot.com