Dear Readers,

MM is a 36-year-old truck driver who resides in Portmore, St. Catherine. MM smokes five to 10 cigarettes a day. He's been smoking since he was a teenager, but not many of his friends now smoke. He finds that smoking passes the time, especially when he is driving long distances. But he would like to stop. He realises that he is very dependant on smoking as recently, he tried to stop smoking for a short while during which time he was taking some antibiotics, but he found it very difficult to do so. MM asks Lifeline to suggest how he could stop smoking.

MM is going to need to see his family physician to receive prescribed medication which will assist his adherence to the difficult task of how to stop smoking which is equivalent to 'kicking' a drug habit. Some people are able to stop smoking 'cold turkey' but this requires significant mental strength and discipline. It is perhaps easier to obtain medical help.

Very unhealthy

It is now commonly known that cigarette smoking is extremely bad for an individual's health, both short term and long term. Cigarette smoking is known to contribute to many disease including lung cancer, emphysema, high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, sudden death, cervical cancer, bladder cancer and osteoporosis (thinning of the bones).

Cigarette smoking also causes serious complications in the developing foetus. When the pregnant mother smokes, the baby is likely to be small in size, more sickly and perhaps not quite as bright mentally as could have been.

Note: smoking, while taking the birth control pill is an absolute contradiction ('no-no'). The risk of sudden death is high. Even knowing all this, people continue to smoke.

The difficulty with stopping is that nicotine, the active ingredient in most cigarettes allows the person to relax when tense. When cigarette smoking is suddenly discontinued, the individual craves the nicotine from which he or she is deprived. This often causes the person to become irritated and nervous.

Nicotine withdrawal causes headache, insomnia (sleeplessness), difficulty concentrating, tremors and even stomach cramps. It is difficult to undergo the effects of nicotine withdrawal. The prescribed drugs to help to stop smoking are the following:

❒ The nicotine patch releases a small amount of nicotine at a steady rate through the skin of the individual. This lessens the nicotine withdrawal symptoms and allows the person to function normally while they gradually stop smoking. The level of nicotine contained in the patch is gradually lessened until the body doesn't need the nicotine at all.

❒ The anti-depressant Bupropion (Zyban or Wellbutrin) has a significant side effect which diminishes the urge to smoke. Many people often taking this prescribed medication for only a few weeks find that they are cured of smoking.

Both methods work well on their own but can be combined in difficult cases. Buproprion should not be taken if the person suffers from seizures.

For those of us who value a youthful look, cigarette smoking is anathema to you. Smoking causes the production of excessive amounts of harmful free radicals in the body which leads not only to cancers but also to aging and wrinkles in the skin.

Smoking deprives the body of Vitamin C while Vitamin E is a strong antioxidant which protects against damage by the free radicals produced in smoking. Both Vitamin C and Vitamin E supplements should be taken by the person who is attempting to 'quit' smoking and also, by the smoker.

Write Lifeline

P.O. Box 1731

Kingston 8