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Cigarettes

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What are cigarettes?

Nicotine is one of thousands of chemicals in cigarettes. It's addictive and causes most of the withdrawal symptoms you feel when you first stop...

Two hours after you stop smoking all the nicotine is out of your system, and the nicotine by-products are gone in two to three days.

But even when the nicotine has gone it's the addiction, the habits, and the feelings that make you want to keep smoking...

So what’s in cigarettes which make us feel this way?

  • When you smoke you inhale more than 4,000 chemicals and heavy metals including:

  • Acetone (paint stripper)

  • Ammonia (toilet cleaner)

  • Methanol (rocket fuel)

  • Naphthalene (moth balls)

  • Carbon monoxide (car exhaust fumes)

  • Formaldehyde (preservative)

  • Cyanide (rat killer)

  • Toluene (industrial solvent)

  • Arsenic (ant poison)

  • Butane (lighter fuel)

  • DDT (insecticide)

  • Cadmium (car battery metal)

 

 

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Health effects of smoking

'We don't smoke the shit, we just sell it. We reserve that for the young, the black, the poor, and the stupid.'

-Quote from a tobacco industry executive as told in an American committee hearing in 1989.

Let's face it, if you smoke you're the victim of some mega-marketing by the tobacco companies - they pay big bucks to find ways to get people to start smoking. And you might think it's only going to be a problem when you're old. Wrong. Smoking affects you right now.

Chances are you've thought about quitting before or tried to do it. If you plan before you quit you're more likely to be successful. So take the step and start planning now - it doesn't take much time.

Some facts:

  •  One smoker dies every ten seconds throughout the world.

  •  19,000 young New Zealanders start smoking each year.

  •  Maori have lung cancer rates amongst the highest in the world.

  •  A pack of cigarettes costs less than 10c to produce.

From 1998 - 2025 5000 million people will die from smoking related illnesses - that's equivalent to a Vietnam war every day for 27 years or the Titanic sinking every 27 minutes for 27 years.

How does smoking effect you?

It affects your whole life! In fact, it's a huge part of who you are.

Relationships
Who you end up going out with could depend on whether you smoke or not. If you're a smoker you're more likely to end up living with a smoker. And if you have kids, they are more likely to grow up being smokers.

Health

  • Most of what you hear about smoking is that you'll be sick when you're old, but you can get sick now.

    You could get health problems like:

  • Increased heart rate and blood pressure

  • Less oxygen getting to the brain

  • Increased coughing

    Shortness of breath (because your lungs can't function as well)

  • Tiredness - you won't be able to run as far as you used to and you just won't have the physical stamina.

  • Even though you’re young you may not be able to keep up with non-smokers who are twice your age.

 

 

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How to quit?

Smoking is an addiction with three parts:

1. Addiction to nicotine

2. Habits
You have trained yourself so well that you think you can't do some things without a cigarette. It becomes so automatic you don't even notice it. For example:

  • Walking home from school - craving – cigarette

  • School pressures - craving – cigarette

  • Argument with parents - craving – cigarette

  • Boredom - craving – cigarette

  • Alcohol - craving - cigarette


3. Feelings

Feelings are also important. You smoke when you're happy, when you're sad, when you're tired, or for something to do when you’re bored. You might use cigarettes to cover up uncomfortable feelings too, such as when you're angry or when you're nervous.

Spot your trouble areas and you can untangle yourself.

 

 

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Quitting

1. Once you've decided to quit choose an easy day to stop - when you won't be under too much pressure, but will have plenty of things to occupy yourself.

2. Clean up before your quit day. Toss out all your cigarettes, lighters and ashtrays.

3. Choose a quit method that will work for you. Everyone is different, so you need to find one that works for you. Going cold turkey means stopping suddenly and completely. This works for lots of people. Cutting down is another way. You could reduce your smoking by half and/or delay your first cigarette by an hour each day. Take with you only the number of cigarettes that you plan to smoke each day.

4. Remember, there's no such thing as failure - cutting down the number of cigarettes you smoke is a great start. Make sure you still set a quit date.

5. If you try one way of quitting and it doesn't work, then try something else. Don't give up. Each quit attempt brings you closer to quitting for good.

Fact: Within two days of quitting, your taste buds come alive and your sense of smell improves. Your breath, hair, fingers, teeth and clothes are all cleaner.

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Where to start?

Keep a record of when you smoke like the one below. This helps you get to know your smoking habit.

Each time you have a cigarette, or feel a craving, fill in the date, time, activity, what you are feeling and how much you feel you need a cigarette, using the point system below. Look for the main trigger that set it off. A habit? A feeling? Can you do without this cigarette?

If you think there's no reason keep looking. To start with it can be hard to see because the habits have become so automatic. You'll need to keep a sharp eye on yourself for a while, but it's worth the effort.

Most people who quit successfully go through three stages:

  • Building up their determination to quit
  • Learning new coping skills
  • Gradually reducing the number of cigarettes they smoke each day

How long that it takes depends on you.

Some of the common roadblocks are:

Fear of Losing Friends
It can be really hard if your friends and whanau continue to smoke while you are quitting. You could try to get them to quit with you or try hanging out with people that don't smoke.
The percentage of 14 - 15 year olds who smoke regularly decreased by almost half, from 21% to 13% in 2007.

Fear of Failing
Each time you try to quit, you learn more about why you smoke and about how to stay smokefree next time. Keep trying. You will succeed!
'We're all going to die sometime'

This is an excuse some smokers use. You could get run over by a bus too - but who lies out on the road waiting for it! The reality is that every cigarette you smoke is damaging your body - your heart, lungs, bones, blood vessels and sex life.


Sadness
Sometimes you might feel sad about quitting. It's OK to feel like this and it will go away.

 

 

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So you want to quit?

Where to start? 

Keep a record of when you smoke like the one below. This helps you get to know your smoking habit.
Each time you have a cigarette, or feel a craving, fill in the date, time, activity, what you are feeling and how much you feel you need a cigarette, using the point system below. Look for the main trigger that set it off. A habit? A feeling? Can you do without this cigarette?

If you think there's no reason keep looking. To start with it can be hard to see because the habits have become so automatic. You'll need to keep a sharp eye on yourself for a while, but it's worth the effort.

Most people who quit successfully go through three stages:

Building up their determination to quit

Learning new coping skills

Gradually reducing the number of cigarettes they smoke each day

How long that takes depends on you.

Some of the common roadblocks are:

Fear of Losing Friends

It can be really hard if your friends and whanau continue to smoke while you are quitting. You could try to get them to quit with you or try hanging out with people that don't smoke.The percentage of 14 - 15 year olds who smoke regularly decreased by almost half, from 21% to 13% in 2007.

Fear of Failing

Each time you try to quit, you learn more about why you smoke and about how to stay smokefree next time. Keep trying. You will succeed!
'We're all going to die sometime'
This is an excuse some smokers use. You could get run over by a bus too - but who lies out on the road waiting for it! The reality is that every cigarette you smoke is damaging your body - your heart, lungs, bones, blood vessels and sex life.

Sadness

Sometimes you might feel sad about quitting. It's OK to feel like this and it will go away.
Quitting
1. Once you've decided to quit choose an easy day to stop - when you won't be under too much pressure, but will have plenty to occupy yourself.

2. Clean up before your quit day. Toss out all your cigarettes, lighters and ashtrays.

3. Choose a quit method that will work for you. Everyone is different, so you need to find one that works for you. Going cold turkey means stopping suddenly and completely. This works for lots of people. Cutting down is another way. You could reduce your smoking by half and/or delay your first cigarette by an hour each day. Take with you only the number of cigarettes that you plan to smoke each day.

4. Remember, there's no such thing as failure - cutting down the number of cigarettes you smoke is a great start. Make sure you still set a quit date.

5. If you try one way of quitting and it doesn't work, then try something else. Don't give up. Each quit attempt brings you closer to quitting for good.

Fact:

Within two days of quitting, your taste buds come alive and your sense of smell improves. Your breath, hair, fingers, teeth and clothes are all cleaner.

Finding Help (Remember you are not alone in this!!)

For advice and support for quitting you can also call Quitline on 0800 778 778 - they're open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and are there to help!
You can also check out www.notourfuture.co.nz a smoke free website, also have a at www.quit.co.nz if you are looking to quit smoking.

Also check out txt2quit a texting support services helping young people quit smoking.
Click here for more information about nicotine replacements such as patches and gum.

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