Many of us have dealt with smoking in some form or the other, be it being a smoker yourself or having to encounter a smoker either at your home or in a public place. Whichever it may be, one things certain, that is that it’s a hard habit to curb and ones you smoke that first experimental cigarette there’s no turning back, therefore it’s important to nip this habit in the bud before things get out of hand.  Daily Mirror Life sat with Dr K.K. W. Perera to ask some important questions about smoking.

 

What are the adverse health effects of smoking?

Smoking has been called the single most preventable risk to human health and it’s so correctly stated in that, it causes harm to nearly every organ in the body unnecessarily. The risk of developing a disease is proportionate to the duration of smoking and the number of cigarettes one has smoked, as calculated by pack years. However there’s never such a thing as being too late to stop smoking because the body has an ability to repair the damage caused by it, though up to a certain extent. There’s a common misnomer that smoking “light” cigarettes, cigars and pipes has a reduced risk on detrimental effects to the health than cigarette smoking, research has proven that it is in fact incorrect. The systems mainly affected by smoking are,

Cardiovascular system-smoking causes intimal damage in a blood vessel causing acceleration of atherosclerosis, decrease in the HDL:LDL ratio(good vs bad cholesterol) as well as increase production of platelets making blood more viscous leading to coronary heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, stroke and hypertension. It also weakens vessels leading to abnormal saccular dilatations in vessels(aneurysm).carbon monoxide in the cigarette smoke can form stable complexes with the red blood cells that carry oxygen causing low oxygen delivery to cells.

 

Respiratory system-one of the most serious implications to this system is carcinoma of the lung. Cigarette smoke contains 19 known carcinogens and 90% of lung cancer in men and 80% of lung cancer in women is attributed to smoking. It also causes a disease entity called COPD where the air sacs in the lung lose its elasticity irreversibly and produce excess sputum making it hard to breathe. Exacerbation of asthma attacks, occurrence of recurrent respiratory tract infections also occur.

 

Pregnancy and reproductive health-smoking or having a smoker in the house is a significant factor in miscarriage. It also induces premature birth resulting in low birth weight babies. It also increases the chances of sudden infant death syndrome. Due to arterial narrowing men experience erectile dysfunction while in women folliculogenesis is disrupted causing female infertility so much so that even producing a baby through in vitro fertilization is of reduced chances.

 

Oral health-oral carcinoma, loss of taste, salivary changes, bad breathe and teeth staining also result.
Cognitive function-a cognitive decline is seen due to shrinkage of brain matter (cerebral atrophy). It’s now thought to increase risk of Alzheimer’s and dementia development as well.

 

Psychological, social and behavioral health-It has been reported that smokers have a higher everyday stress level and their nicotine dependency further exacerbates it. In terms of social health surveys have found it to be a predictor of divorce.

 

What is second hand and third hand smoking and how serious are they?

 

Secondhand smoking also known as environmental smoking it’s the act of involuntarily inspiriting the smoke that a smoker exhales or the smoke that comes directly from the burning tobacco product. Secondhand smoke contains many toxic chemicals and they linger in the air for many hours and aggravate asthma, cause cancer and other serious problems.

Third hand smoking is a fairly new concept where the residue of the smoke clings to hair, clothing, upholstery and skin, which when inhaled ingested or absorbed through skin can pose serious threats to health especially that of children. The third hand smoke is resistant to cleaning therefore its best to keep smokers away from our homes, vehicles etc if possible.

What are the ways to try and kick the habit?

Since nicotine causes dependence it’s not easy for many to stop, some may even show withdrawal effects with smoking cessation. However there are nicotine replacement products instead of cigarettes, such as patches, gum, lozenges.

Chewing on something such as sugarless chewing gum, nuts, carrots can help keep the mouth occupied. Some may have used smoking as a way to deal with stress for them, relaxation techniques such as meditation, yoga, listening to music might help.

Physical activity, engaging in prayers and doing household chores can also help distract a person from craving cigarettes. Identifying triggers and avoiding them (e g-parties, bars) may help. Call a family member or join a support group for some moral support. Finally keep delaying the urge minute after minute reminding your’ self the benefits of quitting and never fool one’s self by thinking that you can stop by having just one!




(By Samurddhi Tillekeratne)