Words of Wisdom from SharLeigh

TO SMOKE OR NOT TO SMOKE?

We hear of people dying from lung cancer and for a few moments we feel sorry for them and their family and yet some of us still go on smoking. Why? Because that cigarette is so addictive it is not easy to just walk away. Yet each time we use tobacco it is pouring poison into our bodies and the people around us. These poisons slowly build up in the body over time. Even people who have quit smoking 5, 10 or 20 years ago are still susceptible to cancer. Peter Jennings recently died of lung cancer and he stopped smoking in 1980! He only lived for four months after his diagnosis. Intelligent people have great rationalizing abilities - I’m sure you have heard them all. I will quit smoking tomorrow. My dad died at 90 and smoked everyday of his adult life, why should I worry? I only smoke a little to keep the stress down. I tried but I just can’t quit. Smoking relaxes me. Every time I quit I gain weight. Those are just excuses and denials of the hard facts! Cancer is the second leading cause of death and smoking is a major cause of cancer. Each year the American Cancer Society publishes the estimated cancer cases, deaths and survival rates in the United States. This information is obtained from the National Cancer Institute and The National Center for Health Statistics. For the year 2005, the American Cancer Society projects (in the United States) 1,372,910 new cancer cases and 570,280 cancer deaths. That equates to more than 1,500 deaths per day. Do the math - at least 23 percent of all deaths in America are caused by cancer for people under the age of 85. Let us put this in perspective: we are horrified when 14 of our soldiers in Iraq are killed in one day and rightfully so; but can you imagine 1,500 deaths each and every day? But no matter how many statistics are published, it means nothing until your doctor tells you that you have cancer. Then and only then will you understand the real price of smoking. Four years ago I gave up smoking when I was told that I had cancer. The journey, which included 14 months of rugged treatment and then radical surgery, was Hell on earth. Am I free of cancer? Sort of. For the rest of my life I will have to see an Oncologist and the threat of the cancer coming back is always there. To quit smoking is hard but death is harder! Next time you reach for a smoke, just toss it in the trash can. The first step is the hardest, but it does get easier from there.