FOOD AND HEALTH: You Can Quit Smoking

     The world knows that smoking is really bad for the health. That is why it is prohibited to smoke in public places, nowadays, and even in private establishments such as office buildings and even in airplanes. The reason? Second-hand smoke is as dangerous as direct smoking. Even cigarette companies have also agreed that "smoking is, indeed, hazardous to health". But why are there so many, still, who have not stopped this habit? Why couldn't they quit smoking?
     Perhaps they should consider these facts which I gathered from the article of Dr. Tyrone Reyes in The Philippine Star newspaper's Health and Family section, titled "Stopping Smoking: You Can Do it!". Today, he said, 17.3 million Filipinos aged 15 and older still smoke and tragically, smoking kills 10 Filipinos every hour. Smoking is a major cause of cardiovascular disease, including heart attacks, strokes, and peripheral artery disease, together with other diseases as emphysema, chronic bronchitis and pneumonia, even lung cancer. Also smoking may attribute to other health problems as cataracts, sinusitis, dental disorders, aging skin, diabetes, and get this, men--erectile dysfunction. Hellow!
     Well, don't fret smokers because I also smoked before and tried to stop several times and went back to smoking, even with all the warnings and with all the danger signs. I started smoking when I was 22 and before I completely stopped in 1999, I was a chain-smoker smoking 3-4 packs a day. Uhu, uhu, uhu! Just reminiscing this makes me cough it out. Nicotine is really addictive and quitting is hard if you don't have the will power to quit. I tried to stop through some gimmicks like not buying cigarettes (but asking from someone else), stopping but eating too much candy or nicotine gum, etc., but to no avail; I went back to the same habit. I was able to stop it for more than 9 months when I got pregnant but went right back to smoking when my baby was more than a month old. My husband was a smoker too.
     So how did I finally quit? In April, 1999, my husband received Jesus as Lord and Savior and I followed after a month. But in August of that same year, we both decided that we would quit smoking and resolved that we would never go back. We were taught as Christians that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and that we should take care of our own bodies. Therefore, we prayed together for the Holy Spirit to help us go through with this decision. And so, we decided the day and went cold turkey; I stayed home for a week but my husband went out to work. The urge was there but not as much as I tried to stop before. Then days went by, weeks, months, years. We're bondage-free! Yes, smoking is a bondage just like any addiction.
     Perhaps our way is not applicable to you. But it takes your decision, your will power to resist, your resolve to quit. As you set your mind to it and truly fix your eyes on the benefits of your decision, you can really quit. Cold turkey is the best way to quit, but to keep it really cold is up to you.