by sjdunphy

Health Consequences Of Tobacco Smoke In People

Cigarette smoking as well as exposure to second hand tobacco smoke has association with premature death caused due to chronic diseases such as different kinds of cancer, heart diseases and lung diseases. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, smoking is the leading cause of about 80 percent of lung cancer deaths in males and almost 70 percent of deaths in females. The risk of dying of lung cancer is almost 26 times higher among the male of the species that smoke cigarettes. Among women that smoke tobacco cigarettes compared with those who never smoked is about 15 times higher. Apart from that, smoking leads to many diseases including cancers of the bladder, oral cavity, kidney, lung, pancreas, and stomach. It is also the leading causative factor of acute myeloid leukaemia. Also, exposure to cigarette smoke during one’s childhood days makes one prone to respiratory infections, ear infections, and asthma.

According to some of the recent study reports, every year, almost half a million Americans die of diseases related to cigarette smoking. Heart disease is one of the leading reasons for deaths in the United States. Cigarette smokers are four times more likely to contract coronary heart disease when compared to nonsmokers, and smoking doubles a person’s risk of suffering from stroke related illnesses. In addition to that, about 90 percent of all deaths due to chronic obstructive lung diseases can be attributed to cigarette smoking and use of tobacco products. Cigarette smoking has many adverse effects on the reproductive health area. Other bad effects include an increased risk of infertility, pre-term delivery, stillbirths, low birth weight of the infant and the much feared sudden infant death syndrome.

Regardless of the knowledge related to the harmful effects generated by cigarette smoke, cigarettes and other tobacco products account for more than 60 percent of the expenditures on all such products in our country. This point to the fact that even though research studies have provided evidence that cigarette smoke unleash detrimental effects on the smoker’s health, many smokers do not take it seriously. People that want their children to grow up in a healthy and smoke-free environment need to take matters into their own hands. Steps must be taken to decrease the level of cigarette smoke exposure faced by children.

Treat your household as a tobacco-smoke-free zone. If you need to smoke, do so only outside your house. Wear a smoke coat that you must take off before returning inside. Set an example by dining with your child in restaurants that are labelled smoke-free restaurants. Ask your friends and relatives not to smoke in the proximity of your child. Be insistent so that you make your voice heard. Talk to your school going or adolescent children about the bad effects of cigarette smoke and the health consequences. Be honest with them, especially if you happen to be a smoker, and talk about it very often. Take a decision not to smoke; quitting the habit of smoking is not easy, but it is really possible.

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by baileyraeweaver

Cigarette Mannerisms

Usually you can give the characteristic of our whole personality simply by the way we smoke. There is huge variety of mannerisms that smokers stick to. Some people always have cigarettes drooping from their mouth. Others play with cigarettes while they are talking moving it up and down in their mouths. In order to show their aggression or irritation, some men hold the cigarette with their thumb and forefinger, the way, which the glowing end shows toward the hand. The major complains of men about the way women smoke cigarettes are that women tend to blow out smoke right into face, without even trying to avoid that.

Very often smokers will assume a pose, as they are sure that it fits their personality. For instance, one not very modest glamour woman confessed to us some of her special “smoking tricks” She was thinking that it makes her look much more glamorous and far too more attractive when she smokes cigarettes with holder. She even insisted that she studied that subject very carefully and wanted the holders to be only long and dark, comparing a long holder with a big hat: “it’s alluring and “don’t dare come close” at the same time.”

As every cigarette smoker goes through the motion of lighting and inhaling the smoke, therefore there are many ways in which these acts are carried depending on the mood.

The faster smoking tempo is, the more nervous is the one who smokes that cigarette. If the smoker is angry, he will blow the smoke in a harsh aggressive way, very impulsively, as if trying to blow somebody down. By the way, person who smokes his cigarette pressing his lips tightly around it is probably about to ask a raise for salary, as if to gain courage from holding it that way.

Among other smoking rituals are: shaking off ashes into ashtray, taking smoking accessories, putting out of cigarette, lighting the new one. Person may not even smoke, but roll a pack of cigarettes in his hand, crumple cigarette, play with the lighter.

“My brand” has a special significance, as if it were a part of the smoker’s credo and personality. For example, a guest who discovers that his host smokes cigarettes of the same brand considers this almost personal flattery. And if a girl changes to the brand of her admirer, he realizes that he surely made an impression.

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Medical Marijuana: The Debate Rages On

Marijuana is also known as pot, grass and weed but its formal name is actually cannabis. It comes from the leaves and flowers of the plant Cannabis sativa. It is considered an illegal substance in the US and many countries and possession of marijuana is a crime punishable by law. The FDA classifies marijuana as Schedule I, substances which have a very high potential for abuse and have no proven medical use. Over the years several studies claim that some substances found in marijuana have medicinal use, especially in terminal diseases such as cancer and AIDS. This started a fierce debate over the pros and cons of the use of medical marijuana. To settle this debate, the Institute of Medicine published the famous 1999 IOM report entitled Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. The report was comprehensive but did not give a clear cut yes or no answer. The opposite camps of the medical marijuana issue often cite part of the report in their advocacy arguments. However, although the report clarified many things, it never settled the controversy once and for all.

Let’s look at the issues that support why medical marijuana should be legalized.

(1) Marijuana is a naturally occurring herb and has been used from South America to Asia as an herbal medicine for millennia. In this day and age when the all natural and organic are important health buzzwords, a naturally occurring herb like marijuana might be more appealing to and safer for consumers than synthetic drugs.

(2) Marijuana has strong therapeutic potential. Several studies, as summarized in the IOM report, have observed that cannabis can be used as analgesic, e.g. to treat pain. A few studies showed that THC, a marijuana component is effective in treating chronic pain experienced by cancer patients. However, studies on acute pain such as those experienced during surgery and trauma have inconclusive reports. A few studies, also summarized in the IOM report, have demonstrated that some marijuana components have antiemetic properties and are, therefore, effective against nausea and vomiting, which are common side effects of cancer chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Some researchers are convinced that cannabis has some therapeutic potential against neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis. Specific compounds extracted from marijuana have strong therapeutic potential. Cannobidiol (CBD), a major component of marijuana, has been shown to have antipsychotic, anticancer and antioxidant properties. Other cannabinoids have been shown to prevent high intraocular pressure (IOP), a major risk factor for glaucoma. Drugs that contain active ingredients present in marijuana but have been synthetically produced in the laboratory have been approved by the US FDA. One example is Marinol, an antiemetic agent indicated for nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy. Its active ingredient is dronabinol, a synthetic delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

(3) One of the major proponents of medical marijuana is the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), a US-based organization. Many medical professional societies and organizations have expressed their support. As an example, The American College of Physicians, recommended a re-evaluation of the Schedule I classification of marijuana in their 2008 position paper. ACP also expresses its strong support for research into the therapeutic role of marijuana as well as exemption from federal criminal prosecution; civil liability; or professional sanctioning for physicians who prescribe or dispense medical marijuana in accordance with state law. Similarly, protection from criminal or civil penalties for patients who use medical marijuana as permitted under state laws.

(4) Medical marijuana is legally used in many developed countries The argument of if they can do it, why not us? is another strong point. Some countries, including Canada, Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Spain, Israel, and Finland have legalized the therapeutic use of marijuana under strict prescription control. Some states in the US are also allowing exemptions.

Now here are the arguments against medical marijuana.

(1) Lack of data on safety and efficacy. Drug regulation is based on safety first. The safety of marijuana and its components still has to first be established. Efficacy only comes second. Even if marijuana has some beneficial health effects, the benefits should outweigh the risks for it to be considered for medical use. Unless marijuana is proven to be better (safer and more effective) than drugs currently available in the market, its approval for medical use may be a long shot. According to the testimony of Robert J. Meyer of the Department of Health and Human Services having access to a drug or medical treatment, without knowing how to use it or even if it is effective, does not benefit anyone. Simply having access, without having safety, efficacy, and adequate use information does not help patients.

(2) Unknown chemical components. Medical marijuana can only be easily accessible and affordable in herbal form. Like other herbs, marijuana falls under the category of botanical products. Unpurified botanical products, however, face many problems including lot-to-lot consistency, dosage determination, potency, shelf-life, and toxicity. According to the IOM report if there is any future of marijuana as a medicine, it lies in its isolated components, the cannabinoids and their synthetic derivatives. To fully characterize the different components of marijuana would cost so much time and money that the costs of the medications that will come out of it would be too high. Currently, no pharmaceutical company seems interested in investing money to isolate more therapeutic components from marijuana beyond what is already available in the market.

(3) Potential for abuse. Marijuana or cannabis is addictive. It may not be as addictive as hard drugs such as cocaine; nevertheless it cannot be denied that there is a potential for substance abuse associated with marijuana. This has been demonstrated by a few studies as summarized in the IOM report.

(4) Lack of a safe delivery system. The most common form of delivery of marijuana is through smoking. Considering the current trends in anti-smoking legislations, this form of delivery will never be approved by health authorities. Reliable and safe delivery systems in the form of vaporizers, nebulizers, or inhalers are still at the testing stage.

(5) Symptom alleviation, not cure. Even if marijuana has therapeutic effects, it is only addressing the symptoms of certain diseases. It does not treat or cure these illnesses. Given that it is effective against these symptoms, there are already medications available which work just as well or even better, without the side effects and risk of abuse associated with marijuana.

The 1999 IOM report could not settle the debate about medical marijuana with scientific evidence available at that time. The report definitely discouraged the use of smoked marijuana but gave a nod towards marijuana use through a medical inhaler or vaporizer. In addition, the report also recommended the compassionate use of marijuana under strict medical supervision. Furthermore, it urged more funding in the research of the safety and efficacy of cannabinoids.

So what stands in the way of clarifying the questions brought up by the IOM report? The health authorities do not seem to be interested in having another review. There is limited data available and whatever is available is biased towards safety issues on the adverse effects of smoked marijuana. Data available on efficacy mainly come from studies on synthetic cannabinoids (e.g. THC). This disparity in data makes an objective risk-benefit assessment difficult.

Clinical studies on marijuana are few and difficult to conduct due to limited funding and strict regulations. Because of the complicated legalities involved, very few pharmaceutical companies are investing in cannabinoid research. In many cases, it is not clear how to define medical marijuana as advocated and opposed by many groups. Does it only refer to the use of the botanical product marijuana or does it include synthetic cannabinoid components (e.g. THC and derivatives) as well? Synthetic cannabinoids (e.g. Marinol) available in the market are extremely expensive, pushing people towards the more affordable cannabinoid in the form of marijuana. Of course, the issue is further clouded by conspiracy theories involving the pharmaceutical industry and drug regulators.

In conclusion, the future of medical marijuana and the settlement of the debate would depend on more comprehensive and comparable scientific research. An update of the IOM report anytime soon is well-needed.

by Max Nathan

Various Stop Smoking Techniques

Smoking and human life expectancy share an inverse relationship. An increase in the former brings a decrease in the quality as well as length of the latter. The smoke that enters human body during a cigarette smoking session is replete with a very hazardous substance called nicotine. Active as well as passive smokers suffer greatly due to smoking generated diseases. It is not surprising to see the escalating number of human lives that come to an end every day. In view of the alarming death rates caused by cigarette smoking, doctors have started developing new therapies. This article attempts to list the various methods and measures taken in this direction to thwart people into getting into this vicious cycle.

When starting to save a smoker from the habit of smoking, the first thing that has to be done is to cleanse his body of excess nicotine. The various kinds of nicotine therapies and nicotine replacement therapies work towards serving this very purpose. During the treatment period, the individual must restrain himself from smoking by being fed with fixed doses of nicotine so as to avoid any detrimental repercussions. This will serve to keep the person in a very balanced state. This will also minimize the smoker’s craving for cigarettes, and the dose of nicotine can be reduced gradually over time.

Nicotine substitution is also carried out by making use of nicotine laced chewing gums. This method, included in many smoking cessation programs, can be traced back to the year 1972 and it was approved in 1984. These nicotine gums were effective to a great extent but lost its efficacy when people started getting used to them. In addition to nicotine- gums, nasal sprays, inhalers and skin patches, there are some other devices also that work towards the same cause. Users who are keen on quitting the habit put the nicotine patches to have assistance as and when needed.

Some prescription drugs have also been found to be of great help to hard core smokers in getting rid of smoking addiction. Basically, most of these drugs are antidepressants in nature and are prescribed by doctors to patients suffering from depression. But, these drugs have great efficacy in controlling the habit of smoking. Negative Stimulus is another method employed for quitting the habit of smoking. It involves administering feeble electric shocks that instils in the person an aversion to smoke. The governments in various countries as well as some non-profit organizations have kicked off quit smoking campaigns and programs in order to make people aware of the deleterious effects of smoking.

Hypnosis therapy is a psychotic therapy that helps in lessening one’s obsession to smoke. This particular therapy purges the smoker of pro-smoking thoughts and instils in him an anti-smoking concept.  This is successful due to the fact that hypnosis takes the person undergoing treatment to a semi-conscious state where his mind can be programmed to do some things which the expert wants him to carry out. Regular and controlled treatment using hypnosis can diminish one’s craving to a good extent.

I delete retarded comments. Deal with it. Rody Walker performing The Pro-Smoking Cigarette Song. Given out with a FREE CD at a secret show on June 20, 2009. Being that this CD was given out for free, I assume there are no copyright issues. Photo taken from Flickr. Download the track here: www.mediafire.com

by Rocky Mountain News Photos

Smoking From All Sides

For the person who is smoking there appears to be enjoyment and a sense of relaxation. This does not apply to non smokers who end up being surrounded with smoking fumes. While you might find it difficult to find areas where smoking from all sides surrounds non smokers, there are some places and countries where this still occurs.

When a smoker lights up a cigarette, pipe, cigar or some such other tobacco product they will need to exhale the excess smoke. The noxious fumes which are exhaled will then cover the surrounding area with smoke, fumes and various toxic materials. This passive smoking can make a non smoker susceptible to the same health problems as a smoker.

Now due to pressure from various groups there are designated places where you can find people smoking from all sides of the area. In these areas the air is thick with smoke and noxious fumes. This is however a needed area as there is sections of the public which are still hooked onto tobacco products.

While these smokers are for the most part aware of the health concerns which can arise with smoking, they still continue with their habit. The people who are at risk from smoking from all sides of an area like a street corner or an alleyway are mainly the smokers themselves. The next group of people will be the people who pass these locations.

You will find that there is a wide cross section of people who can become affected by health problems when they are confronted with smoking from all sides of a place like a smoking section of a restaurant. In a smokers section of a restaurant you will find that smokers eat at the same time as they are smoking. As a result of this the smokers section is filled with the fumes of various types of tobacco products.

This is not a phenomenon that you will see in lots of restaurants but the ones where you have these sections the reality of second hand smoke drifting out to the rest of the restaurant is real. And even though the other diners are not in that section of the restaurant they will still find that they are surrounded by fumes of smoking from all sides of the enclosed restaurant space.

Even today the battle of smokers and non smokers rages on. You will need to avoid areas where smoking from all sides can make you nauseous. The care that you take with your health today will provide you with a healthy and happy life tomorrow.

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Legitimate Online Cigarette Sales – The Recent Smoking Ban in India

Legitimate Online Cigarette Sales

Suddenly smoking seems to be such and important issue in India because of the countrywide ban on the deadly habit all public places and offices. Is this ban justified? Definitely. Compared to other countries who have banned smoking in public places, Indians were free to smoke as and when they wished, risking hundreds of lives. This will now end, hopefully. Legitimate Online Cigarette Sales

Agreed that when a person smokes, he or she is solely responsible for their health. Why should it trouble others if someone is spoiling their health? But do they have the right to endanger the lives of others? Medical evidence has shown that the dangers and health problems associated with passive smoking is almost the same as that of regular smoking and this is the main reason why the Government of India and put a nationwide ban on smoking. Kudos to Dr. Ramadoss, the Union Health Minister, for his efforts in bringing up the issue of smoking.

People, especially young children, are picking up smoking like never before leading to more and more health concerns. A major inspiration for them to start smoking is through films and media. As film stars have a huge fan following, their actions and on-screen mannerisms are often aped. Likewise, a popular actor when smoking on screen can unintentionally inspire many other fans to start smoking. This fact quite fully justifies the ban on on-screen smoking on television and films. Legitimate Online Cigarette Sales

However, the point about banning smoking in films such like taking away freedom of art and expression. Most directors and actors smoke on screen to portray certain characteristics in a particular character and by banning smoking, they have limited one aspect of characterisation. If smoking is an issue, then alcoholism, and so many other evils are equally important issues and banning these will not solve the problem, or even limit it.

Not surprisingly, a poll conducted by a popular Indian daily revealed that almost 84% of it’s readers are quite happy with the smoking ban. In addition to this, many popular celebrities and other figures are endorsing the ban, so that the public takes it more seriously. Sadly, officials in the country need to be informed of this. Following the day after the ban was imposed, several Indians were booked, however the officials who booked them were not aware of the rules of the ban themselves. This is indeed a sad comment on the law enforcement service in the country.

There will always be a debate about the culture of smoking, especially since the country has a population of an estimated 120 million smokers, one of the largest in the world. We can only hope, pray or speculate that positive results can be achieved by imposing smoking bans. Legitimate Online Cigarette Sales

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Its About Time Smokers Quit!

Those who smoke absolutely love the occasional puff on a cigarette. Little do they know what their habit is doing to them.

As the cigarette smoke first enters the body a multitude of noxious, harmful gasses associated with smoking (ammonia, formaldehyde, hydrogen sulfide, acetone, benzene, tar, hydrogen cyanide, cadmium and carbon monoxide to name but a few from around 4000 chemicals) start to react with living tissues such as the eyes, nose and throat. These are particularly sensitive areas of the body which when damaged through time lead to what is known as a ‘smokers cough’.

The natural cleaning mechanism of your lungs starts to get eroded away. Your lungs begin to function at an increased rate, all the time the harmful compounds from smoke attacking your airway’s tissues. Mucous starts to build up causing you to cough. Large quantities of excess mucous act as places for pathogens, e.g. flu and bronchitis, to reproduce.

Deeper into your lungs scavenger cells, which typically remove alien particles from your lung’s airways, are damaged. The protein ‘elastin’ which keeps your lungs flexible is weakened promoting the development of emphysema. Chronic obstructive lung disease is a possibility with smokers. This disease has been directly linked to smoking.

Once in your lungs, smoke raises your heartbeat by as much as 30% during the initial 10 minutes of smoking. Chemicals such as nicotine have produced abnormal heartbeats in many smokers.

As your heart rate heightens so does your blood pressure therefore levying pressure onto all your blood vessels and the heart its self. As a result your chances of a heart attack or stroke are more likely.

Carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless and lethal gas typical of car exhaust fumes moves straight into your blood stream via the lungs. This simple organic compound acts to combine with more force than oxygen to the hemoglobin in red blood cells. This forces away any molecules of oxygen. Never being released, the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood is lowered by up to 15%. Less than normal levels of energy providing oxygen reach your brain and other tissues, physical activity becomes more difficult.

Nicotine reaches the brain in around 10 seconds after having inhaled your first cigarette smoke. Absorbed into the blood and hitting the brain, the central nervous system is affected resulting in an increase in heart beats which in turn increases your hearts requirement for oxygen.

Smoke promotes your skin’s blood vessels constricting, giving the appearance of more wrinkles. Smoking also has the affect of drying out skin. What you may end up with after many years addicted to smoking is a pale weak complexion, grey skin that is wrinkled as well as heavy lines around the mouth and eyes.

With all this horrible information above saying how a smokers situation really is why not start and persevere with a quit smoking program. Contrary to popular belief health improvements happen quicker than you may think! You’ll save a whole heap of cash, food will taste better and you’ll feel and look healthier.

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by Locace

How To Stop Smoking Pot – The 3 Most Important Rules To Finally Help You Quit Smoking Cannabis!

So you have finally decided to stop smoking pot. Firstly, I applaud you for your decision. I know from personal experience, how much cannabis can take over your life. I also know exactly how tough it is to stop smoking pot once and for all. Therefore in this article I would like to provide some tips on how to quit smoking cannabis.

1) Rather than trying to stop smoking pot cold turkey, you need to formulate a plan. Most cannabis smokers have a set routine when they try and give up. You will kid yourself that as soon as your current baggy is finished, that’s it, you’re going to quit smoking cannabis for good. So you smoke that baggy twice as quickly as you normally would and when it’s finished, you find yourself buying more! It’s a vicious circle that will control you if you allow it to.

Set a date about one month in the future as your “giving up” date. Up to this date gradually cut back on the amount of cannabis you are smoking. If you’re a heavy smoker, try and cut back to 1 or 2 joints a day. After ten days, cut this down again. One a day or one joint every alternate day for the next 10 days. For the final 10 days, try and only smoke 2 or 3 joints in total until you reach your giving up day!

2) On the day that you eventually decide to stop smoking pot, you will need to throw out and lose every single piece of drug paraphernalia that you own. Papers, lighters, roach material, bongs, bags, grinder, etc. I made the mistake of initially keeping all these things locked up in a drawer. This just makes it far easier to get sucked back in.

If the temptation to smoke cannabis is there, you are unfortunately more likely to take it. No matter what anyone tells you, pot is addictive. However, it is far more a psychological addiction that a physical one. If you leave temptation in your way, your mind is likely to take over and you will probably be smoking pot or weed by the end of the day.

3) The hardest and yet most important aspect of how to stop smoking pot is losing your friends. Cannabis is both a social and yet very unsociable drug. Usually long time pot smokers become distant from family and friends who don’t partake in their habit. However, other pot smokers soon become your closest allies.

CLICK HERE To Discover How I Finally Quit Smoking Weed

I found that most of my “pot-smoking” friends were all for me giving up and were even proud. However, I couldn’t ask or force any of them to quit smoking cannabis with me. Watching them smoke and pass round a joint between each other was killing me! Once again why would you put temptation in front of you. When you finally stop smoking pot once and for all, you will realize what a great decision you’ve made. However by hanging out with the same friends, believe me, it won’t be long before you revert back to your old ways!

Terramed Alliance News USA Cancer Rates Falling

From http://www.childhood-leukemia.com/news/us-cancer-rates-falling/

Overall, cancer death rates fell 2 percent per year from 2001 to 2005 in men and 1.6 percent per year from 2002 to 2005 in women. By comparison, between 1993 and 2001, overall death rates in men declined 1.5 percent per year and, between 1994 and 2002, 0.8 percent in women.

“We continue to see a decrease in death rates from cancer in both men and women and this is mainly because of prevention – mostly a reduction in smoking rates; detection which includes screening for colorectal cancer, for breast cancer and for cervical cancer; and also improved treatment,” said report author Ahmedin Jemal, strategic director for cancer surveillance at the American Cancer Society.

“To put this in perspective, the number of lives saved is more than the population of Washington, D.C.,” said Dr. Louis M. Weiner, director of the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University. “In my mind, that’s a cause for some celebration. However, there are some sobering trends that we have to be aware of. The death rate for cardiovascular disease has dropped much more dramatically over that period than has the death rate from cancer, indicating the difficulty of developing new strategies to reduce the incidence of cancer and also to treat it more effectively. This is a very complex set of diseases. While we have come a long way, we have a lot further to go.”

Hopefully, continued reductions in smoking rates, especially among women, should push cancer rates further down in the future, the researchers noted.

Although some 45 million Americans continue to smoke, for a prevalence rate of about 20 percent, “smoking prevalence is going in the right direction,” Jemal said. “We’re going to see a reduction in lung cancer death rates, although I don’t know when it might be. In particular, we will see a reduction in cancer death rates among women that’s going to drive [down] the overall cancer death rate.”

Better screening could also further fuel the trend. Only 50 percent of Americans over the age of 50 currently get regular screening for colorectal cancer, he said.

Here is a summary of the report’s findings:

* In 2009, an estimated 1,479,350 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. (766,130 in men and 713,220 in women) and 562,340 people will die of the disease (292,540 men and 269,800 women). This means 1,500 deaths from cancer every day).

* Between 2001 and 2005, the incidence of cancer in men declined by 1.8 percent per year; from 1998 to 2005 the incidence rate in women dropped 0.6 percent per year. In men, the gains were largely as a result of decreases in the incidence of lung, prostate and colorectal cancer (the three most common cancers). In women, the decline was largely attributable to declines in both breast and colorectal cancer, the two most common tumor types in women.

* Cancer death rates dropped by 11.4 percent for women between 1991 and 2005, with a 37 percent decline in deaths from breast cancer and a 24 percent decrease in deaths from colorectal cancer.

* The three leading cancer killers in men are lung, prostate and colorectal cancer. In women, they are lung (accounting for 26 percent of all cancer deaths), breast and colorectal cancer.

* Men have a 44 percent chance of developing cancer during their lifetime and women a 37 percent chance, although women are more likely to have the disease earlier (before age 60).

* Lung cancer shows the greatest regional variation in cancer incidence, ranging from a low of 39.6 cases per 100,000 in men and 22.4 per 100,000 in women in Utah to 136.2 in men and 76.2 in women in Kentucky. These statistics correlate directly to smoking rates in the two states, with Utah having the lowest prevalence in adult smoking in the country, and Kentucky the highest.

* Blacks still assume a disproportionate share of the cancer burden, with black men being 18 percent more likely to develop cancer and 36 percent more likely to die. Black women have a 6 percent lower incidence rate but this is more than made up for with a death rate, which is 17 percent higher than that seen in white women.

* The five-year survival rate for children with cancer is now 80 percent, up from only 58 percent for those diagnosed in the mid-1970s. But cancer is still the second leading cause of death in youngsters aged 1 to 14 (after accidents), with leukemia being the most common cancer diagnosed.

* And in a special section, the report finds that cancer survivors are about 14 percent more likely to develop a new cancer than individuals who have never had a cancer diagnosis; almost 900,000 cancer survivors have been diagnosed with more than one cancer. Patients diagnosed with tobacco-related cancers, such as cancers of the oral cavity, lung, esophagus, kidney, and urinary bladder, have the highest risk for a second cancer because smoking is a risk factor for at least 15 types of cancer. Breast cancer survivors comprise almost half of women who develop a second cancer.

Unfortunately, cancer remains the leading killer (surpassing heart disease) for persons under 85, and one-quarter of deaths in the United States still come from cancer, the report stated.

“It’s good news that the death rates for the most common cancers are on the decline, but there are still too many Americans dying of cancer every year,” said Dr. Alan Astrow, director of medical oncology and hematology at Maimonides Cancer Center in New York City. “It’s troubling that African-Americans continue to experience higher rates of mortality from cancer than whites. It’s also troubling that Americans with less education have higher death rates. There are continued high rates of deaths from lung cancer. It’s hard to feel good about 160,000 Americans dying of lung cancer every year. That’s a disturbing statistics which we, as a nation, need to address.”

The report appears online and in the July/August print issue of CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

Terramed Alliance is a non-profit organization in the battle against leukemia  helps  children living with cancer and their families. Our goal is to make sure children battling cancer know they are not alone. For more information please visit www.terramedalliance.org.  Email at contact@terramedalliance.org

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My Quitting Smoking Story & How It Can Work For You

I have been smoking since the age of 15, that was 14 years ago, from around the age of 19 I have been trying to quit the 20 a day habit. I can tell you now that I have tried pretty much every method of a way to quit smoking, the longest I have ever gone without a cigarette is 7 months.  But since starting on the electronic cigarette I don’t have the need to quit, sounds ironic I know but it is doing no harm to me so I can at least enjoy them.  For more information on them visit Smoking Electronic Cigarettes.

Here is a list of what Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) or method I have tried and the approx length of time I quit with them:

1. Gum – Used to take these quite a lot on different occasions and with other NRT such as patches. Quit smoking for around a month on these alone.

2. Lozenges – Did not quit smoking at all on these.

3. Patches – Have spent hundreds of pounds on these and have used well over £1000 of tax payers money getting these from quit smoking clinics. One year I managed to finish the 12 week course (without a single cigarette) and stayed nicotine free for another 4 months. Have to say though, every so often I thought of a cigarette and soon went back, thought I did a good job of quitting smoking though.

4. Inhaler – Just over a month I quit with these, I remember the doctor giving me these along side a course of full strength patches, which did not seem logical to me, my nicotine levels were up to my eye balls but in the end I still reached for that cigarette, and it made me feel very ill. Still I did not quit smoking though.

5. Hypnotherapy – This is one of the best methods I have tried, I booked myself to see someone on New Years Eve, as that was the only time I could, and afterwards I felt no different, all I kept thinking about was if I needed a cigarette? I ended up going out for the evening and I did not feel like a cigarette, even after a couple of drinks, ok maybe a few… I went through the night not wanting a cigarette at all. But 3 months went by and I ended up thinking of smoking again. One drag was all it took. Back on it full time. Have tried hypnotherapy twice since then and had no effect on me at all.

6. Books – I read the Allen Carr’s Easy Way To Quit Smoking, I was quite amazed with this book as I did actually quit smoking after finishing the book, but only for 3 months. I still give the guy (who sadly passed away) credit for writing this really good book. In the end I though I still did not quit smoking.

7. Clinics – This is the clinic version of the Easy Way to Quit Smoking, I paid £120 for their time, managed to quit smoking for a measly 3 days. Went to a couple more free sessions to give it another go, sadly did not work for me.

8. Audio Hypnotherapy – Lost count the amount of times I went to bed listening to these to actually think I will wake up a non smoker.

9. Pills – I recommend not to take these, Champex and Zyban. These have severe side effects which vary from mild headaches to even having fits. Basically all these do is switch your nicotine receptor cells in your brain OFF, so you do not feel like a cigarette, but as soon as you stop taking them your receptor cells are back online. Did not quit smoking on these as I stopped taking them after a week from sleep deprivation and constant cold sweats.

10. Cold turkey – I lasted the same amount of time it took me to get to shops to buy a pack of smokes or to politely ask someone at work.

So there you have it that is approximately 10 years of my life trying to quit smoking, sounds very sad when I actually think about it. I find myself strong willed but somewhere deep inside me I really do actually enjoy smoking, otherwise I would not go back.

This is where the electronic cigarette has actually given me complete freedom, I no longer have the feeling and pressure of trying to quit smoking. A doctor once told me that the nicotine receptor cells in your brain are there forever, 20 years can go by and if I had 1 drag of a cigarette I would be hooked again. After 10 years of constant pressure on myself of quitting I can safely say that all I will be smoking from now on is the electronic cigarette. It gives me the exact sensation of smoking tobacco i.e. blowing smoke (vapour) and when I am out socialising I can still smoke with other smokers. It did feel strange at first and slightly embarrassing but has been a great conversation starter as not many people have even seen or heard of these devices. I will be sticking to these for a very long time.

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