Ritu began smoking cigarettes when she was a teenager. She continued to smoke on and off throughout her twenties, often more strongly when she was anxious. Ritu began losing weight and experiencing stomach aches when she was 43 years old. She knew she couldn’t afford to be sick as a single parent with only one source of income. However, the pain became severe and Ritu was forced to seek medical attention. As a result of her smoking habit, she was diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer, says Dr Suvadip Chakrabarti, a cancer doctor in Kolkata.
Smoking kills, but India’s tobacco addiction is growing rapidly. Tobacco use kills over 6 million individuals each year. According to a report, every third person between the ages of 15 and 50 was hooked to smoking in 2019. Cigarettes have a proven harmful influence on one’s overall health. If you’re looking for a reason to quit smoking this year, No Tobacco Day is right around the corner. This 31st May, on No Tobacco Day, take a pledge to quit smoking.
Reasons To Quit Smoking
Heart Problems
Carbon monoxide is present in the smoke produced by the combustion of tobacco. When you breathe in carbon monoxide, it reduces the amount of oxygen in your blood. This causes your heart to work harder to supply the body with enough oxygen. This can result in a stroke or heart attack. Cigarette use has been connected to blood clotting, raising the risk of having a stroke or heart attack, says the oncologist in Kolkata.
Harmful To The Lungs
Smoking can impair your airways and the little air sacs in your lungs, inducing lung illnesses. COPD, which encompasses emphysema and chronic bronchitis, is one of the lung conditions caused by smoking. The majority of lung cancer cases are generated by cigarette smoking.
Vision Impairment
Cigarette smoking can impair your eyesight. It has been shown in the scientific literature that nicotine reduces the creation of a vital component required for one to recognize shapes and see at night. Furthermore, smoking increases the risk of developing macular degeneration and cataract, both of which cause vision impairment, says the cancer doctor in Kolkata.
Cancers Caused By Smoking
Cigarette smoking can cause cancer practically at any place in the body. Cigarette smoking causes cancers of the mouth and throat, the esophagus, the stomach, the colon, the rectum, the liver, the pancreas, the voice-box (larynx), the trachea, the bronchus, the kidney and renal pelvis, the urinary bladder and the cervix, as well as acute myeloid leukemia.
Suggestions To Quit Smoking
Recognize when you crave smoking and try to replace smoking with something healthier in certain situations. Instead of smoking when you’re bored, talk to a friend or watch something funny and entertaining.
Be friends with non-smokers. If you have a close network of individuals who smoke or use tobacco in other ways, you are far more likely to do the same. This is why you should surround yourself with people who do not smoke.
Try to maintain a healthy diet and obtain enough rest. You’re considerably more likely to grab a cigarette when you’re tired. Make sure you get adequate sleep and eat nutritious food so that you don’t get tired easily, says the oncologist in Kolkata.
Say goodbye to your tobacco addiction once and for all this No Tobacco Day and start living a healthier life.