WHY QUIT SMOKING NOW?

Smoking is a pleasure for some people and for others it is a symbol of elegant, coolness and so on. However, many realize the dangers behind smoking, yet, the number of smokers continue to rise every year. It is estimate that 1 in 5 of us smokes. When 28 million Malaysian are been used as a data, now you got 5.6 million smokers in Malaysia alone; while it reaches more than 1.4 billion worldwide.

Once you light up a cigarette, the heat helps to release thousands of chemical compounds in the list of name such as carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, nicotine, tar, at least 43 carcinogens and numerous mutagens. Carcinogens are agents that induce the process of cancer in our body and mutagens are agents that induce mutation of genes in the body.

Nicotine is found naturally in tobacco leaves as an alkaloid that used widely as an insecticide in the past. With low concentration in a stick of cigarette, it reaches the brain in within 10 seconds and full body after 15 seconds upon inhalation. Nicotine raises the blood pressure, heart rate and increase alertness and relaxation. However, once the nicotine level dropped, smokers will take another stick to hit the desire, thus the need for maintaining the kicking level causes addiction.

Tar in the cigarette similar from those used to pave the road! Tar tends to accumulate on the branchial tubes leading to the lungs and burn the tiny hairlike projection of cilia that trap harmful particles before they enter the lungs. Thus, the chances of getting lung cancer is high.

Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas that quickly absorbed into the blood to reduce oxygen capacity. Therefore, smoker has to exert more physical effort to attain a task than non-smoker, causing heart to work harder. The gas also causes vision impair, impairing perception of time and coordination.

So, why not stop smoking? Over the years of research, many points out the great benefits from smoking cessation. In dentistry, we also deal with cases that need smoking cessation in the clinic. Below are the good effects of quitting your cigarette packs.

WITHIN THE PERIOD OF STOP SMOKING

20 minutes Blood pressure, pulse rate and temperature of hands and feet return to normal.

8 hours Nicotine level is now fallen to only 6.25% of normal peak during smoking.

12 hours Blood oxygen level returns to normal.

24 hours Anxieties peak but should normalize within 2 weeks - this is the most critical part, where success depends on this 2 weeks period.

48 hours Damaged nerve endings start to regrow while your smell and taste return to normal; anger and irritability peaks.

72 hours Breathing becomes easier and lungs functional abilities increase with 100% nicotine-free and almost 90% of its by products should have been passed down via urine; symptoms of chemical withdrawal syndrome like restlessness peak.

10 to 14 days Recovery is likely where addiction no longer in place; blood circulation to gum and teeth normalize.

2 weeks to 3 months The risk for heart attack starts to drop and lungs functional begins to improve.

3 weeks to 3 months Blood circulation improves substantially and any chronic cough would have disappear.

1 to 9 months No more fatigue and shortness of breath; cilia have regrow to help to keep your lungs clean and reducing risk of lung infection.

1 year Risk of coronary heart disease dropped to half of a smoker.

1 to 5 years Risk of stroke declined to half of a non-smoker.

10 years Risk of lung cancer declined by half of an average smoker

15 years Risk of coronary heart disease is now that of a person who never smoked.


SO STOP SMOKING NOW. IT'S NEVER BEEN TOO LATE.

Source: http://whyquit.com/whyquit/A_Benefits_Time_Table.html, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotine,