New Years Resolution Quitting Smoking
In 1964, the U.S. Surgeon General linked cigarette smoking to lung cancer. Soon afterwards, warning labels were placed on packages. Television commercials advertising top-selling cigarette brands were banned from the airwaves. As schoolchildren, our education now included the discouragement of tobacco use. Some of our parents freaked out and began the process of quitting smoking while others ignored the hype and continued to puff away at their hearts' content.
For those who continue to make a concerted effort at quitting, New Year's Day has become a common target date; so to speak. Some succeed, but most do not. Along with the other 364 days during the year, I quit smoking when I go to sleep and resume the practice when I'm awake. If a person truly wishes to stop smoking, he or she must have the desire to do so; and, well; I don't. I enjoy smoking. An addict's copout? Perhaps so, but life is too short to worry about wondering if I'll be one of the less than 10% of smokers who'll get lung cancer; most of whom will be in their 70's, anyway. If the length of my existence on this planet is reduced by 5 years due to the enjoyment of a relaxing product, then so be it.
Yes, you read correctly. With few exceptions, lifelong smokers may lose 3-5 years over their nonsmoking counterparts; not the 15-20 years that the Anti-Tobacco movement would lead us to believe. In addition, since there are so many toxins in the air we breathe and the foods we eat, there are simply NO absolutes when determining what will eventually do us in. My mother smoked 3 packs of cigarettes a day for 38 years. To my amazement, she stopped "Cold Turkey" in 1991, at the age of 61. Did it help? You decide. She died in 2005 of Type 2 Diabetes, which would have developed whether she smoked or not. In another instance, an 84-year-old acquaintance was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2006, even though he stopped smoking during the Watergate Era. Although purely anecdotal, this suggests the following: A) It does no good to quit smoking, or, B) his particular case of lung cancer had nothing to do with smoking.
At any rate, we as individuals must each make our own lifestyle choices. We have the right to change our habits and nuances as we see fit. Some may choose to take up exercise. Others may decide to adhere to a low-fat diet. And of course, there will be many who aspire to stop smoking. I have no problems with that.
But if this happens to be you, do the 60 million of us who continue to smoke a favor: Don't become one of those self-righteous, hypocritical "former smokers;" for they are far, far worse than those who have never smoked.
