Smoking addiction and recommended ways to quit smoking

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Many people think that cigarettes are their loyal friends when we are stressed, lonely, sad or depressed. When we are having fun, we think of cigarettes. When we are socializing, we smoke. Before meals, after meals, we smoke. When we go to the bathroom, we have to smoke. Until it becomes a habit. In fact, these behaviors are cigarette addiction or smoking disease. 

Smoking addiction and recommended ways to quit smoking

It is well-known that cigarettes are full of nicotine, which if the ยูฟ่าเบท https://ufabet999.app body receives it for a long time, will cause lung cancer, heart disease, and have negative effects on other organs. In addition, cigarette smoke can also severely harm people around you, or what is called second-hand smoke. The World Health Organization revealed that in one cigarette smoke, there are more than 4,000 types of chemicals, 250 of which are toxic and more than 50 of which are carcinogenic. The longer you smoke, the more you are at risk of diseases that shorten your life. Cigarettes shorten your life by an average of 13.2 years for men and 14.5 years for women. In addition, the 2017 National Statistical Office Disease Survey found that in Bangkok in 2016, there were approximately 1 million smokers, with approximately 6,000 deaths from cigarettes. The average cost per cigarette spent is approximately 1,000 baht, and the average cost per hospital stay is 130,000 baht. The lifetime prevalence of smoking addiction in Thailand was 14.9 percent in 2014.

What diseases does cigarettes bring?

Each year, cigarettes kill about 6 million people worldwide, more than 600,000 of whom die from second-hand smoke inhalation, which leads to dangerous diseases such as:

  1. Heart disease
  2. Lung cancer
  3. Oral cancer
  4. Affects blood vessels
  5. Hypertension
  6. It affects the fetus, causing the pregnant mother to be at risk of miscarriage and stillbirth.
  7. Decreased sexual performance 

If you want to quit smoking, what should you do?

Smoking addiction is a preventable cause of death. Smoking cessation services by doctors and medical personnel or health professionals are one way to quit smoking. Many people do not have access to smoking cessation services, so they choose to quit cold turkey, which has a low success rate and is likely to relapse. People who quit smoking, or who stop smoking or reduce the amount they smoke immediately, will experience at least four symptoms within 24 hours, such as irritability, stress, anger, anxiety, poor concentration, increased appetite, restlessness, depression, and insomnia. Therefore, receiving treatment from a doctor is a truly effective way to quit smoking.

You should follow your doctor’s advice. The doctor will assess your intention and readiness to quit smoking, assess the severity of your addiction, and the factors that trigger you to smoke. You will also receive appropriate help and treatment. You will also have an appointment to follow up on your symptoms and the results of your quit smoking.

There are currently several effective medications that can increase the success rate of smoking cessation. They are divided into two groups:

  1. Nicotine replacement therapy, which helps reduce cravings and relieves nicotine withdrawal symptoms, is available in chewing gum and skin patches in Thailand.
  2. Non-nicotine medications include nortriptyline, buproprion SR, and varenicline. These medications work by reducing cravings and making it easier for smokers to quit. Patients typically take them for about 8-12 weeks. 

In cases where  smokers have tried to quit smoking but have not been successful, they may feel discouraged because the nature of smoking addiction is a chronic disease that comes and goes. All it takes is determination and true intention. In such cases, seeking advice from a doctor or public health professional to receive advice or medication will increase the chances of success in quitting smoking.