Smoking kills…period!

by Kazeem Olalekan MRPharmS

Clearly do you don’t think the above statement is profound! Everyone knows by now the inherent dangers of smoking. In 2007, I posted a piece on the Iforg weblog in anticipation of the introduction of Smoke-free initiative across England. I am going to repeat what I said in that blog here:

[a] If you smoke whilst pregnant, there is a good chance you could kill your baby through spontaneous abortion or sudden infant cot death! Even if your baby survives, he/she may arrive too early or have a low weight. That can’t be good; can it?

[b] Passive smoking (breathing in other people’s cigarettes smoke) can make you cough, give you sore throat, make you sneeze, give you headache, make you feel sick. And these are the easy stuff! Long term, you are likely to get recurrent chest problems and infection, high risk of heart and lung disease and if you are pregnant, pass those nasty gases to your unborn child!

[c] OK, you live in a bubble! You are not pregnant and you smoke by yourself! What about the risks to yourself? Yes, nicotine from cigarette will leave you wanting more, make you depressed, irritable, restless, light headed and may leave you a nervous wreck.

[d] Check out the endless list of illness caused by smoking (2)

 

It was a No-Smoking day earlier this month and there is this NHS initiative designed to help you quit. It is call the Quit Kit. If I was a smoker, I will sure want to get my hand on one. I got my hand on one and have I now know what is in it. Check the image below.

If you are a smoker, visit the website http://smokefree.nhs.uk/, get yourself a Quit Kit and kick the habit!

I said it before and I will say it again, follow the steps below:

[a] Prepare yourself to quit

[b] Enlist the support of close friends and relatives

[c] Keep a diary of when you smoke. If you can, avoid the particular situations which encourage you to smoke.

[d] Book a 1 to 1 appointment with your healthcare professional.

[e] Get prescription for the right type of product to help you quit.

[f] If you do start smoking again, don’t worry, just start again from [a] above and this time promise yourself to stay off for longer than before.

[g] Remember to reward yourself when you succeed -celebrate success.

NO ONE WILL BE HAPPIER THAN YOU! – ENJOY A SMOKE-FREE YEAR