GIVING UP SMOKING » cigarette

Cigarette News

StopSmokingCoach — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 18:02:05 +0000

WILL THIS BE THE END OF THE MENTHOL?
The FDA is discussing on the possibilities on eliminating menthol cigarettes to prevent teens from smoking. Some studies suggest that eliminating the menthol cigarette from the market will have major impact on underage smoking prevention. The counter argument to this has been that the ban will create a black market for menthol cigarettes because there are already a large percentage of smokers that smoke menthol.

THE LAND OF RISING SUN FACES A RISING CIGARETTE PRICE
Cigarette smokers in Japan are flocking to their local retailers to stock up on cigarettes before the unprecedented 100yen (about $1.20) price hike takes place. Considering the largest price hike was only 20yen so far, this is surely a shocker for many cigarette smokers in Japan.

CIGARETTE SMUGGLING – PROHIBITION ANYONE?
A New Jersey man was arrested for transporting 400 cartons of untaxed cigarettes with the intentions to sell them locally. The cigarettes were purchased in North Carolina and he was on his way back to New Jersey to sell them. This is only one of the smaller cases of cigarette smuggling that’s been going on around the country. *(I’m all for quitting smoking, but if there is an upside to cigarette price hike, I don’t think our legislators paid enough attention to the potential downside of the hikes.)

Giving Up Smoking – Finding The Motivation

Derek Kim — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 17:42:12 +0000

Some studies show that only 3 percent of the first time cigarette quitters give up smoking for good. This is a grim outlook for any smoker hoping give up smoking, but it should also be noted that different studies have shown a more favorable success rate. In any case, one common trend among these studies is that they show very low success rate among first time quitters. As someone who quit smoking for good for many years now, it is my personal opinion that giving up smoking is all about the motivation. So here are some powerful methods to motivate yourself to quit smoking for good on your first try.

The first and the most effective motivating factor are the people that you care about. If you are a father, then what more motivation do you need than giving up smoking for the sake of your children. If you are a husband, then you have a responsibility be there for your wife through the good and bad, smoking will make that difficult for many reasons I shouldn’t have to explain to you. As a son or a daughter of loving parents, the worst thing you can do to your parents is to die before they do, smoking can make that possibility very real. As a friend, maybe your early departure from this life might not have as profound effect as it might have on your family, but you will still be leaving many people who care for you and love you, to grieve for you for the rest of their lives.

For most people, I would assume that family and friends should be the main motivator in giving up smoking. But to be fair, quitting smoking is extremely difficult feat to achieve and you may need additional motivation to stop smoking for good.

Ask yourself this question. When was the last time you felt fresh and energized when you woke up in the morning? You probably can’t remember because smoking will do that to you. No matter how young and or fit you may think you are, if you are a smoker you will not have good mornings. You will wake up with a lump of mucus in your throat and your first action would be to force that lump out of your throat into your mouth and into your garbage with a forceful gag. Not the way to start an ideal morning if you would ask me.

Do you play sports? Try jogging for 5 minutes and I assure you that you’ll feel like dying. Hold the tip of a spoon with your thumb and your index finger. Try to hold the spoon steady and I assure you that you will shake like a 100 year old man. You are not normal and smoking has left you crippled in many more ways than you can imagine.

Think about everything that I’ve noted here so far and use them to motivate yourself. When it comes to giving up smoking, you or anyone else for that matter cannot force it onto you. You have to want it, giving up smoking is very difficult but it becomes so much easier if you truly want it and having the motivating factors to give up smoking will mean the difference between success and failure. Giving up smoking is all about the motivation, find that x-factor that pumps you up and free yourself from cigarettes today.

Why Smokers Should Avoid Other Smokers – Pack Animal Behavior

Derek Kim — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 17:20:48 +0000

Smokers behave like pack animals, they huddle together and they like to be part of a group. Perhaps it’s the modern day image of smokers that influence them to this act. Anti-smoking was not a popular word back in the days. Smoking was considered trendy and it was perceived as the pastime for the sophisticated men. For women, since women’s rights was in its infancy, in a weird way smoking meant equality among sexes. Much has changed since then, public image of smoking has moved on from cool to disgusting.

We are seeing smoking ban everywhere and there’s no sign that the trend will slow down anytime soon. In developed nations across the globe, the activity of smoking is viewed negatively even in places allowed. People have tendency to become bolder or at times careless when a negative act is done within a large group. The cigarette smoker’s tendency to smoke in groups may borrow its popularity from such behavior.

Since the smoking-ban in bars has been enacted, it has become a common sight to see a group of people smoking outside the pubs. You will often find yourself go out for a single cigarette and end up smoking more. Out of the boredom of waiting to finish your cigarette you decide to strike a conversation with the smoker next to you. The conversation continues long after your first cigarette is burnt off and you simply light another one. This is perhaps why smokers should stay away from one another. Not only would a smoker smoke, but even when he or she does not, they’ll still be subjected to second hand smoking.

Ironically cigarettes bring people together. Correction, cigarettes bring smokers together. When smokers are in a large group, they tend to smoke a lot more than usual and that is exactly why smokers should stay away from other smokers.

If you want to quit smoking, then you should avoid places where large group of smoker congregate and you should stick to that plan for at least the first month of quitting. Giving up smoking is hard enough, be wise and don’t make it any harder than it should be. Making small changes such as avoiding other smokers will go a long way in giving you the best shot at giving up smoking.