There are good habits
and bad habits, but most people agree that smoking is
one of the worst habits that one can entertain.
Nevertheless, many people are caught in this
addictive pleasure trap and will most likely succumb
to its perils. Others, however, will face the facts
about smoking and decide to ditch this destructive
habit. The choice made will ultimately determine
quality of life.
SMOKING: Why
quit?
Choosing to use tobacco products is
triggered by a variety of factors. While sourcing
those factors may prove to be personally enlightening
as well as challenging, it is more important to focus
on the solution than the cause. This being said,
unravelling tobacco dependency usually involves
weighing the options: to smoke or not smoke. Common
reasons for quitting tobacco use are as follows.
- Health
risks- the harmful effects of
tobacco use are well known and are documented
scientifically, medically, and
experientially. Through personal research and
investigation, the destructive nature of
tobacco use gives ample if not thorough proof
that introducing a toxic substance into the
body on a regular basis is tantamount to
committing slow suicide. For a short history
about tobacco products and their accompanying
side effects read our LIVING
Letter#126: SMOKING here.
- Cost-
tobacco products are expensive. Prices have
risen dramatically within the last two
decades. This rise may be due to
manufacturing costs or a decline in demand
(because many people are quitting).
Nevertheless, in a declining economy,
affording tobacco products may be more
difficult if not impossible.
- Pollution-
Tobacco use comes with a measure of
pollution. It pollutes the body, permeates
clothing/home furnishing/food, the air in a
house/car, and the environment at large.
Furthermore, discarded cigarette/cigar butts
and other smoking paraphernalia often pollute
the landscape and public domain, and, most of
all, foul the air of non-smokers.
- Availability-
in the event of food shortages and supply
chain disruptions tobacco products may be in
short supply or simply unavailable.
In addition to the
above is social pressure. The increased awareness of
the harmful effects of tobacco products have prompted
anti-smoking campaigns which have forced the tobacco
industry and law makers to enact measures to protect
public welfare through education and legislation.
Thus 'Tobacco-free Zones' have been designated for
schools/college, public transportation and public
institutions. Likewise stores, restaurants, and
businesses have adopted a no-smoking policy. These
measures have in effect served the public good in
that they have curbed tobacco use in general by
making it more difficult for smokers/chewers to
engage their habit. These measures have also helped
to take the glamor, prestige, and romance out of
tobacco products by re-imaging and re-branding them
as weapons of personal and public destruction. Thus
it is not uncommon that, for the sake of
self-respect/survival and mounting social pressure,
many tobacco users are kicking the habit.
SMOKING:
Quitting strategies
Everyone has a style and a way of doing things, so
what is common and comfortable for one may not be for
another. This is true for prospective tobacco
quiters. A few strategies for becoming tobacco-free
include
- Cold
Turkey- immediately stop. Throw out
all tobacco products, ash trays, and
associated paraphernalia.
- Gradually
wean off- curb tobacco usage a
little at a time. Set you pace and stick to
it with no turning back.
- Use
commericially-designed 'quiting aids'- kits,
gums, herbal formulas.
Many tobacco users
turn to alternative methods/treatments such as
pharmaceutical drugs, hypnosis, etc. in order to
eliminate their tobacco dependency. These strategies,
however, are not recommended or endorsed by this
ministry as they can and often do create more
problems than they solve.
SMOKING: How
to quit
- Make a
commitment. Decide to quit. Set a
date as a starting point. Be determined,
focused, and willing to do all that it takes
to kick the habit. Announce your decision
with friends and family in order to gain
their support and help.
- Improve
your diet. Starve/quell your
appetite for tobacco by eating living foods:
raw, organic fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts,
and sprouted grains. Be generous with dark,
leafy greens as they are nutrient-rich
cleansers that fortify body cells. Cells that
are well-fed reject harmful, toxic substances
that are found in tobacco products.
- Start a
daily exercise routine. Exercise to
help the body clean out toxic tobacco
residues that lodge in cells, tissues, and
organs.
- Pray. Seek
spiritual help. Read scripture, pray, and
most of all, repent for polluting your body
temple. Enlist others to pray and support
your efforts. If necessary, fast in order to
break the tobacco stronghold.
SMOKING: The
quitting process
Becoming tobacco-free is a process that may
take time and require considerable diligence,
discipline, and determination. Nevertheless, small
steps in the right direction can amount to great
victories. Achieving the goal is best realized by
implementing lifestyle improvements, especially diet
and exercise. Like many disorders/addictions, dietary
changes prove to be the best approach, since they
have a profound, positive effect on healing the body.
Incorporating fresh, raw foods into the diet begins
the healing process. Tobacco products contain many
toxic, heavy metals that block the body's ability to
absorb nutrients. This impasse can be corrected
through adopting a natural, wholesome diet, for it is
a proven fact that when given the right food, the
body will heal itself. As Hippocrates aply stated, 'Let
food be your medicine.' Tobacco is not food nor
is it a medicine. It does not cure.
It kills.
Weaning away from
tobacco use can be enhanced by starting a cleansing
program. Products are available on the market that
directly address detoxifying tobacco residues, many
of which are naturally-sourced. Cleansing body cells
can facilitate as well as hasten the quitting
process.
Conclusion
The adverse effects of tobacco use have been known
for a long time. Smoking in public was first made
illegal in Massachusetts in 1632. In recent decades
increased public awareness of the consequences
related to tobacco use has resulted in more stringent
legislation to protect the welfare of the general
public. While reigning in tobacco use via legal means
may not be the best answer for addressing the
problem, it has helped society to rethink and reduce
tobacco usage by taking the glamor out of a cigarette
drag or a chew. Popular ad campaigns aimed at
stopping tobacco use have convinced many people to
quit.
Those who have 'kicked
the habit' usually agree that the road to a
tobacco-free life is often paved with difficulty and
challenges, but the journey is worth the effort.
After all, living is better than 'dying by tobacco.'
Just saying 'NO' to tobacco products works for some
but not all, for tobacco dependency is more than a
habit. It is an addiction.
It could be said with
some accuracy that the widespread acceptance and
therefore indulgence in tobacco products stems
largely from a combination of poor/inferior diet plus
unresolved emotional and spiritual problems. That an
overwhelming segment of the populace has become a
human chimney and/or chews like a cow is a sign that
personal values have fallen to a dangerous low. For
many it would seem that life is cheap, but when it
comes to buying tobacco products, expense is not an
issue. This ought not to be.
Life is sacred, not to
be thrown away like a cigar or cigarette butt or spit
out like a worn-out chew. We are born to live not
destroy ourselves. If you are caught in the tobacco
trap, consider getting out. You only have one life to
live, so make it a healthy one!
