Many smokers start or continue their habit in order to deal with stress. But quitting smoking increases stress itself. That double-whammy makes it doubly hard to stop. Understanding what creates stress and finding healthier ways to deal with it well help in that struggle.

At low dosages, nicotine is a stimulant. It increases heart rate and raises the blood pressure. Those biological changes interact to produce psychological ones. They’re perceived, up to a point, as pleasurable. At higher levels, nicotine induces a relaxing state.

Both those effects tend to alleviate stress. Stimulation generates alertness. That gives a positive feeling, induced to a degree by the dopamine generated in the brain, along with other changes to its pleasure centers. Inducing relaxation has a clear and direct influence on stress level.

Yet, physiologically, stress or anxiety and feeling the exhilaration of challenge are very similar. The key to the difference lies in how we evaluate the external events and the reactions to them within ourselves.

Few external events, if any, are inherently stressful. It depends on how we evaluate their potential impact on our goals and values. Yet, the facts that lead to that evaluation are real. The loss of a loved one, the risk of losing a job, even everyday situations such as someone changing lanes rapidly in front of us on the highway are all potentially stressful. There’s a high likelihood those will negatively impact what we want.

Turning to cigarette smoking to deal with that stress is, in part, substituting a chemical for a change in attitude.

We can, for example, conclude that everyone on the road is rude and dangerous. But that’s obviously an overgeneralization. Most people don’t take foolish risks on the road most of the time. The risk of lower income from losing a job can happen. But we might also get another, even better, job in a day or a week.

It’s difficult to take that positive attitude right at the moment of quitting smoking. That’s one of the reasons only about 6% of those who stop succeed long-term on their first try. One thing can help: build up that attitude before reaching for a cigarette. Work on it while engaging in the habit.

Look to events that are often associated with lighting up, even when they don’t directly involve stress. An after meal cigarette can be delayed. Delay it longer and longer each day or week. Before long, that one is eliminated from the daily nicotine dose.

Build a more long term solution to stress by saving a small part of your income each week or month. Let it lay in an account collecting interest. Small amounts build up over time and provide a cushion to fall back on if the job does disappear. That lowers the stress at the moment, but also all the time you’re saving. Knowing that money is there now in case it’s needed later reduces the stress that can come from imagining the worst in the future.

Look for ways to reevaluate situations that cause stress. No one becomes stoic overnight. Nor is the attitude that ‘nothing matters’ helpful, either. Some things do and should matter. But slowly building confidence in one’s ability to meet challenges successfully reduces the odds and frequency of stress.

That program eventually reduces the felt need to smoke, and increases the odds of being able to quit permanently.

Smoking is pleasurable, up to a point. That, after all, is why so many do it. If there were no gain, the practice would quickly die out. But a lot of meaning is stuffed into that innocent phrase ‘up to a point’. While the short term benefits of smoking cigarettes is real, the harm is equally real - and it’s potentially much more serious and long lasting.

There are several common factors that tend to lead someone to smoke. Stress, peer pressure and other psychological factors are present for virtually everyone. Substituting a toxic chemical for a healthier means of dealing with them is often viewed as simpler. But the long range consequences can be dire.

Official estimates are that 87% of lung cancer cases can be attributed to long-term, heavy smoking. The odds of stroke are 2-4 times higher for smokers than non-smokers. The risks of coronary heart disease are similar. For COPDs (chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases), such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis or asthma, the statistics are equally frightening. About 80-90% of COPD cases are among those who smoke.

The specific scientific facts took a few generations to establish. But there are now thousands of studies that correlate smoking with ill health effects. While the exact causes and links between smoking and stroke or cancer are still not fully known, the correlation is overwhelming.

The relationship, for example, between the increased build up of fatty deposits on the arteries as a result of smoking is well established. The effects on the lungs as tar builds up in the alveoli are plain to see. The hacking, reduced energy and other effects require no scientific study to know.

Several dozen carcinogenic compounds have been identified in cigarette smoke. They range from such familiar terms as tar and benzene to nitrosamines. Carbon monoxide is present in cigarette smoke, where it binds with hemoglobin to deprive the blood stream of needed oxygen.

Quitting isn’t easy. On average, only 6% succeed in stopping smoking permanently the first time they try. But it’s possible to be in that group, and to increase that number by joining it.

As with any long term health decision, it requires willpower. But that mental commitment can be aided by counseling as well as a wide range of products available today. Nicotine gum, patches and inhalers can help. Several non-nicotine alternatives are on the market, too. Anti-depressants like Zyban are an option. A newer prescription drug called Chantix has shown promise.

Dealing with the consequences of stopping smoking are trying. Weight gain is possible. Cravings are almost inevitable, for a while. But the long term benefits of quitting are real, immediate and enormous.

After a few years, the risks of stroke and heart disease return to what they are for non-smokers. The skin regenerates to a normal state. The overall energy level rises and the body and mind are better able to deal with the normal challenges of life.

Quit now and gain those advantages. The alternative is grim.

One of the more serious possible conditions from long-term cigarette smoking is heart disease. That’s a statement we hear often in discussions of smoking. But what does it really mean? What is heart disease, and how does smoking cause it?

In this context, the phrase ‘heart disease’ usually refers to coronary artery disease. That’s a condition in which a major blood vessel that leaves the heart carrying oxygen-rich blood becomes constricted. That increases the odds of a clot or closure that causes a heart attack. That’s why it’s sometimes called ‘having a coronary’.

Long term, heavy smoking greatly increases the odds of that happening for several reasons.

Carbon monoxide is present in cigarette smoke. It binds with hemoglobin, the molecule in red blood cells that helps transport oxygen throughout the body, including the heart. Reducing the oxygen to the heart ups the odds of heart disease.

Nicotine also reduces the amount of oxygen in the blood, while contributing to other conditions that are potentially harmful. It increases blood clotting, which can have a direct effect on the risk of heart attack, as we saw above.

But even more subtle, yet still dangerous, effects are produced by nicotine. One of the most serious, long term, is that it encourages the growth of fatty deposits on the arteries, constricting blood flow and hardening the blood vessel.

One of the ways smoking carries out that damage is by decreasing the amount of HDL (high density lipoprotein), the ‘good’ type of cholesterol. That encourages the growth of those fatty deposits. That condition is called atherosclerosis and it’s a major factor in heart attack risk.

Reducing the diameter of the artery increases blood pressure. That makes it more likely that any weakness present in the artery wall, something termed an aneurysm, will lead to a rupture. That leads to oxygen starvation to the brain, resulting in a stroke. That’s why one so often sees ‘raises the risk of heart disease and stroke’ discussed in the same sentence.

Hardening an artery makes it less able to withstand the normal stresses and strains of its function, as well. Remember, a blood vessel is both similar to a hose and different in important ways.

Like a hose, it carries fluid and can only do so when there are no holes. At the same time, unlike most hoses, it’s ‘on’ all the time. Any stoppage of blood flow, however temporary, causes immediate health problems. Tissues need a continual supply of blood or they die very quickly.

There’s also an overall effect from cigarette smoking that contributes to the risk of heart disease. Smoking causes several physical effects that reduce health. Reduced oxygen, shortness of breath and other effects make exercise more difficult and unpleasant. That, and lifestyle choices often associated with smoking, reduce overall fitness.

That lack of exercise, and the increased weight gain and body fat percentage that tends to accompany it, increases further the chances of heart disease and heart attack. The body is unable to withstand strains that might otherwise be minor. It is less able to withstand the serious biological shock that occurs when a heart attack finally happens. That ups the odds that the attack will be fatal.

Long-term, one-pack-a-day smokers have 2-4 times the chance of developing coronary heart disease than do non-smokers. Quitting today improves your odds immediately. Within 3 months circulation improves. After a year, the odds are half that of a smoker. After 5-15 years, the odds are that of someone who has never smoked. Don’t think it’s too late. Start today on a program to quit smoking.

Stopping smoking often brings on cravings for that foregone cigarette. There’s no one magic method for dealing with withdrawal cravings that works for every individual. Each person employs a different stop-smoking method and each one will react differently as nicotine levels are reduced. But there are a handful of techniques that have proved effective for a wide group.

Cigarette smoking is a habit. As such, when you quit, you want to continue the habit, by definition. For the first two weeks, as the body flushes the chemical products of smoking out of your body, it reacts by trying to return to the status quo. That’s a biological mechanism that works in a number of circumstances.

The technical term is homeostasis. The body tries to maintain a kind of equilibrium. When something changes drastically, it reacts to return things to ‘normal’. Recognizing that it is an in-built mechanism can actually be used to your advantage.

Part of the difficulty of quitting smoking is the anxiety and guilt that often accompany the effort. One feels out of control, uncertain whether we can stick to the decision. That perceived lack of control increases stress, which encourages us to smoke a cigarette to counteract it. That sets up a cycle that’s difficult to break.

That situation is hardest the first couple of weeks as those physical changes take place. Understanding that they are, in fact, beyond one’s control at least, by sheer willpower - but that the commitment is still up to us - can help see you through that difficult period.

During that period, try to minimize any other potential stress-inducing factors. Avoid starting a quit-smoking program when starting a new job. Don’t begin that long-term commitment when a child is about to undergo a serious medical procedure.

Make use of every healthy distraction.

Have small pieces of fresh fruit on hand. When you feel the urge to reach for that cigarette, pop one instead. It helps if the fruit is tangy rather than just sweet or bland. Pineapple and orange work well, but choose your favorite.

When you feel the urge to light up, turn on one of your favorite tunes. A song lasts about the same length of time as a cigarette and, like smoking, you can continue doing what you were while listening. Let the music you love carry you through that period. Pick something elevating. Don’t reinforce negative moods with negative music.

Find small exercises to do with your hands. That may be something as simple as squeezing a tennis ball or using a stress-relieving hand spring. Work up to exercises involving the whole arm, shoulder and back. That helps two ways: it eliminates that harmful cigarette and gets your circulatory system back in shape.

Do something that requires intense concentration, such as trimming a beard, fixing your hair exactly, making a sketch, working a math problem - whatever suits your personality and circumstances. It should be short, but leave little room to think about anything else, including that cigarette you want so much.

Before long, the cravings will decrease to a minimum. They’ll recur from time to time at random over the next few months. Repeat the rituals you used the first couple of weeks, if necessary. Think about the long term good you’re doing for yourself. Before long, it will outweigh the short-term advantages of lighting up.

Stop Smoking - Smoking and Cancer

Heavy, long-term cigarette smoking is often said to cause cancer, most prominently lung cancer and cancer of the larynx. And, the evidence is very strong, amounting to near certainty. But, interestingly enough, exactly how it does so is not fully known. It remains an active area of research.

Normal cells may be damaged, but they have the ability to repair themselves. In other cases, the cells are sloughed off and eliminated by the lymph system, then replaced by new ones. But this process can go awry. Cells can grow abnormally, taking on inappropriate shapes and performing incorrectly. When they do, and that growth reaches a certain level that the body can’t cope with, the result is cancer.

It is known that cigarette smoke contains many carcinogenic substances.

Tar, for example, is present in cigarette smoke chiefly from the burning paper that holds the tobacco, about 10-14 mg per cigarette. It gradually builds up in the alveoli, the small sacs in the lung that make possible absorption of oxygen into the blood stream. It’s believed that their presence is a continual irritant to the cells. That irritation eventually leads to uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells.

Other compounds, called nitrosamines, are present in varying amounts. They’re known to be carcinogenic from hundreds of clinical studies on small mammals. NNK is present in a very low concentration: 56.53 nanograms per cigarette. Other nitrosamines, like NNN and NAT, are present in roughly similar amounts.

A few dozen nanograms (one billionth of a gram - 1 g = 0.0353 oz) may sound like a small amount. But sometimes small amounts can have a large effect. Dog’s noses, for example, are so sensitive they can detect a few molecules of certain substances. Some systems in humans are equally sensitive to certain chemicals. Add to that the fact that many of the compounds and their effects are cumulative and the case begins to look very strong.

No study has found any link between cancer and consuming one or two cigarettes per day. But such smokers are extremely rare and the odds of them catching some other serious disease are so much higher it may be masked. A smoker who consumes a pack a day for 20 years has 2-4 times the chances of getting lung cancer than a non-smoker.

Non-smokers do, in fact get it. But that doesn’t show that smoking isn’t a cause, only that other causes can lead to the same effect. One reason scientists have good cause to believe that smoking increases the odds of getting lung cancer is just the odds cited above. Studies also show that lung cancer was much more rare prior to WWI when smoking rates were much lower. As the number of people smoking cigarettes rose, so did the cancer rate. Similarly, as people smoke more, the rates go up.

No single fact or study proves the case. But put enough of them together, over a long enough period, and eventually the case becomes very strong. So strong that saying ‘long-term, heavy smoking greatly increases the odds of acquiring lung cancer’ becomes a very reasonable statement indeed. It’s estimated that 87% of lung cancers are attributable to that habit.

Don’t let the odds get you. Start a stop-smoking program now.

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Many smokers start or continue their habit in order to deal with stress. But quitting smoking increases stress itself. That double-whammy makes it doubly hard to stop. Understanding what creates stress and finding healthier ways to deal with it well help in that struggle.

At low dosages, nicotine is a stimulant. It increases heart rate and raises the blood pressure. Those biological changes interact to produce psychological ones. They’re perceived, up to a point, as pleasurable. At higher levels, nicotine induces a relaxing state.

Both those effects tend to alleviate stress. Stimulation generates alertness. That gives a positive feeling, induced to a degree by the dopamine generated in the brain, along with other changes to its pleasure centers. Inducing relaxation has a clear and direct influence on stress level.

Yet, physiologically, stress or anxiety and feeling the exhilaration of challenge are very similar. The key to the difference lies in how we evaluate the external events and the reactions to them within ourselves.

Few external events, if any, are inherently stressful. It depends on how we evaluate their potential impact on our goals and values. Yet, the facts that lead to that evaluation are real. The loss of a loved one, the risk of losing a job, even everyday situations such as someone changing lanes rapidly in front of us on the highway are all potentially stressful. There’s a high likelihood those will negatively impact what we want.

Turning to cigarette smoking to deal with that stress is, in part, substituting a chemical for a change in attitude.

We can, for example, conclude that everyone on the road is rude and dangerous. But that’s obviously an overgeneralization. Most people don’t take foolish risks on the road most of the time. The risk of lower income from losing a job can happen. But we might also get another, even better, job in a day or a week.

It’s difficult to take that positive attitude right at the moment of quitting smoking. That’s one of the reasons only about 6% of those who stop succeed long-term on their first try. One thing can help: build up that attitude before reaching for a cigarette. Work on it while engaging in the habit.

Look to events that are often associated with lighting up, even when they don’t directly involve stress. An after meal cigarette can be delayed. Delay it longer and longer each day or week. Before long, that one is eliminated from the daily nicotine dose.

Build a more long term solution to stress by saving a small part of your income each week or month. Let it lay in an account collecting interest. Small amounts build up over time and provide a cushion to fall back on if the job does disappear. That lowers the stress at the moment, but also all the time you’re saving. Knowing that money is there now in case it’s needed later reduces the stress that can come from imagining the worst in the future.

Look for ways to reevaluate situations that cause stress. No one becomes stoic overnight. Nor is the attitude that ‘nothing matters’ helpful, either. Some things do and should matter. But slowly building confidence in one’s ability to meet challenges successfully reduces the odds and frequency of stress.

That program eventually reduces the felt need to smoke, and increases the odds of being able to quit permanently.