Quitting is good sometimes: Observing 'National No Smoking Day'

Quitting is good sometimes: Observing 'National No Smoking Day'

For smokers, lighting a cigarette after a meal or during a break from work provides a semblance of inner peace. There are those too, who, while in their lounges, enjoy a good smoke with a cigar in hand and a glass of whiskey on the other.

It is easy to be curious about smoking’s pleasures, with testimonials from friends and how it is marketed in the media as something luxurious or desirable. It would also be unwise to immediately look at smokers with disdain, as their bodies have simply attached themselves to a seemingly insatiable craving, like for most of us but under different nicknames like junk food, video games or alcohol.

At the end of the day, smoking may do more harm than good for one’s body. Even a 1996 paper published on British Medical Bulletin by John A. Baron — which partly aimed to prove the benefits of smoking — fell short in its mission, as the author stated: “These associations can hardly be used to justify cigarette smoking; its adverse effects are simply too overwhelming. However, these data do provide insight into the mechanisms of several diseases, and suggest avenues for treatments and preventive measures that are likely to be far safer than cigarette smoking.”

The World Health Organization also reported that tobacco (dried tobacco leaves are mainly used for smoking) has killed more than half of users.

Annually, seven million deaths are those who are direct-users, while 1.2 million deaths are those who are exposed to second-hand smoke.

Smoking is an eventual dead-end. For the thousands of self-help catchphrases that preach that refusing to quit is a quality of perseverance that is rewarding in the end, in terms of smoking, quitting is the number one thing smokers should do.

Some are wired differently from others. Others can risk smoking without getting addicted to it. Others are hooked after their first stick. The journey is different for everybody. For non-smokers who want to join in on the observance of National No Smoking Day (held every second Wednesday of March), here are a few action steps:

Show support. If you have a friend or loved one who is trying to quit, show your utmost support either by words of encouragement or getting rid of all smoking-related materials in their living or working environments.

Be firm. Whether it’s on social media or during a friendly chat, be firm in your stance against smoking. Of course, be prudent about it. As mentioned above, we all have our struggles.

Report offenders.Sometimes, there are people who refuse to smoke in the designated smoking areas. Worse, there are some establishments that have not put up a designated smoking area. Report offenders to the proper people in authority.

Smoking kills. Today is a reminder of what you can do to protect your loved ones.

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