Risky Substances, Toxicity
Smoking is bad for you
Smoking is bad for you, no matter what new, fancy, and fashionable ways they invent to keep us hooked in an illusion of prestige and feeling good about ourselves.
It mainly starts in childhood (the best victims are children) from a desire to look older, and it is a totally addictive habit that should never be adopted. This is why education is so important.
My Story
I started smoking at 15 and I smoked for 10 years. I loved luxury cigarettes like Dunhill and Rothmans, with their lovely golden band around the filter. At one point, I was rolling my own cigarettes using Dutch-flavored tobacco. I love flavors and perfume. Per fumum, the Latin origin of the word, means through smoke. This is the way people used to scent their clothes in the old times, burning incense and resins that would embed in the textiles. They smelled good.
Everybody smoked in Romania. Doctors smoked Kent cigarettes. Most doctors smoked. I loved the smell! In fact, my pediatrician, who was my charismatic adult, was such a heavy smoker that he ended up with pulmonary disease and died from it. He was such a great man and doctor! I am so sorry he passed early in life. There was no anti-smoking education at that time, in Romania (1986-1998), and the most common gifts doctors received were fancy alcohol bottles and cigarettes from the Western world.
In the spring of 1998, I was lucky to get respiratory symptoms that made me see the doctor. He told me I had some inflammation and that I should quit smoking.
The second time I saw him, he asked me if I had stopped. I told him, shyly, that I was smoking two short Kent cigarettes a day. From my office desk, the pack of Kent was winking at me, its prestige and dried fig-like flavor.
He was a military doctor, checking the health of pilots and military personnel.
A man with a sad countenance came out of his office, and I was called in.
It mainly starts in childhood (the best victims are children) from a desire to look older, and it is a totally addictive habit that should never be adopted. This is why education is so important.
My Story
I started smoking at 15 and I smoked for 10 years. I loved luxury cigarettes like Dunhill and Rothmans, with their lovely golden band around the filter. At one point, I was rolling my own cigarettes using Dutch-flavored tobacco. I love flavors and perfume. Per fumum, the Latin origin of the word, means through smoke. This is the way people used to scent their clothes in the old times, burning incense and resins that would embed in the textiles. They smelled good.
Everybody smoked in Romania. Doctors smoked Kent cigarettes. Most doctors smoked. I loved the smell! In fact, my pediatrician, who was my charismatic adult, was such a heavy smoker that he ended up with pulmonary disease and died from it. He was such a great man and doctor! I am so sorry he passed early in life. There was no anti-smoking education at that time, in Romania (1986-1998), and the most common gifts doctors received were fancy alcohol bottles and cigarettes from the Western world.
In the spring of 1998, I was lucky to get respiratory symptoms that made me see the doctor. He told me I had some inflammation and that I should quit smoking.
The second time I saw him, he asked me if I had stopped. I told him, shyly, that I was smoking two short Kent cigarettes a day. From my office desk, the pack of Kent was winking at me, its prestige and dried fig-like flavor.
He was a military doctor, checking the health of pilots and military personnel.
A man with a sad countenance came out of his office, and I was called in.
When he heard that I was still smoking, the doctor screamed at me: ” I told you to stop smoking: I also told the man who just left, but he wouldn’t listen!” These words had a profound impact on me.
He did not tell me that the man had an awful disease, but I understood it was bad.
DANGER! It was the emergency tone combined with a statement that left a lot of negative inference space that motivated me to stop, to the depths. I was also a mother. As a mother, I had the responsibility to live long and stay healthy so I can take care of my boy.
At that time, I realized that making lasting decisions is a matter of the heart and soul, not just the mind.
And from the heart, not the mind, like before, I decided to stop. Well done, Doctor! You saved me!As a student of English & American Literature, I once studied a short story, I cannot remember its name or author, in which the protagonist, an American businessman who lost his wife and some fortune during the Great Depression, was an alcoholic and was denied the right to live with his child due to this addiction. The daughter he so much loved lived with her aunt.
He decided to reclaim his child. He made a commitment, from the heart, to consume only a very small quantity of alcohol every day at five o’clock and no more.
A strong will coming from the motivation to regain the tutoring of his daughter resulted in the defiance of the alcohol through this simple exercise.
No longer an alcoholic, he was allowed to get his daughter back. That story remained etched in my memory.
Every once in a while, as I traveled internationally for business, I would be approached by the cigarette boxes in the duty-free shops. I would buy and gift the cigarettes, not having the knowledge and information I have today, and when someone smoked, I would light a cigarette and puff on it – not inhaling at all. At half, I would extinguish it. All this while, I would make myself feel nauseous from it, thinking how disgusting and noxious it was. Behind this act was a scientific discovery that showed how the body protects itself against the carcinogenic effect of the smoke by producing an enzyme. Most of my friends were smokers, so I was combining the desire to try another cigarette with that of protecting my body with the enzyme. Just like in that short story, I took control, and I would never become a smoker again.
Today, the world is well aware of the danger of smoking – the cigarette companies were obligated to put a label on the packs:” Smoking can kill you.”
I highly encourage you to stop this money and health-wasting habit that makes you anxious and not able to concentrate when you do not have cigarettes. That was another reason why I quit. I kept my money, health, and mental activity safe.
He did not tell me that the man had an awful disease, but I understood it was bad.
DANGER! It was the emergency tone combined with a statement that left a lot of negative inference space that motivated me to stop, to the depths. I was also a mother. As a mother, I had the responsibility to live long and stay healthy so I can take care of my boy.
At that time, I realized that making lasting decisions is a matter of the heart and soul, not just the mind.
And from the heart, not the mind, like before, I decided to stop. Well done, Doctor! You saved me!As a student of English & American Literature, I once studied a short story, I cannot remember its name or author, in which the protagonist, an American businessman who lost his wife and some fortune during the Great Depression, was an alcoholic and was denied the right to live with his child due to this addiction. The daughter he so much loved lived with her aunt.
He decided to reclaim his child. He made a commitment, from the heart, to consume only a very small quantity of alcohol every day at five o’clock and no more.
A strong will coming from the motivation to regain the tutoring of his daughter resulted in the defiance of the alcohol through this simple exercise.
No longer an alcoholic, he was allowed to get his daughter back. That story remained etched in my memory.
Every once in a while, as I traveled internationally for business, I would be approached by the cigarette boxes in the duty-free shops. I would buy and gift the cigarettes, not having the knowledge and information I have today, and when someone smoked, I would light a cigarette and puff on it – not inhaling at all. At half, I would extinguish it. All this while, I would make myself feel nauseous from it, thinking how disgusting and noxious it was. Behind this act was a scientific discovery that showed how the body protects itself against the carcinogenic effect of the smoke by producing an enzyme. Most of my friends were smokers, so I was combining the desire to try another cigarette with that of protecting my body with the enzyme. Just like in that short story, I took control, and I would never become a smoker again.
Today, the world is well aware of the danger of smoking – the cigarette companies were obligated to put a label on the packs:” Smoking can kill you.”
I highly encourage you to stop this money and health-wasting habit that makes you anxious and not able to concentrate when you do not have cigarettes. That was another reason why I quit. I kept my money, health, and mental activity safe.
E-smoking – the illusion of safety!
The youth have takes a step forward towards e-cigarettes and vaping.
There is a lot of trouble with this new habit; some say it is even worse than smoking real cigarettes. Do your research!”A common source of toxic vapor containing chemicals like polyethylene glycol (PEG) is e-cigarettes, also known as vaping products. While PEG itself is not classified as a carcinogen, the manufacturing process can result in contamination with known carcinogens that can be released when heated during vaping.
There is a lot of trouble with this new habit; some say it is even worse than smoking real cigarettes. Do your research!”A common source of toxic vapor containing chemicals like polyethylene glycol (PEG) is e-cigarettes, also known as vaping products. While PEG itself is not classified as a carcinogen, the manufacturing process can result in contamination with known carcinogens that can be released when heated during vaping.
How PEG-containing vapor becomes toxic
- Carcinogenic contaminants: The process of creating PEG, called ethoxylation, can lead to contamination with ethylene oxide and 1,4-dioxane.
- Ethylene oxide is a known human carcinogen and developmental toxicant.
- 1,4-dioxane is classified as a probable human carcinogen.
- Contaminants are not listed on labels: These dangerous contaminants are not intentionally added ingredients and therefore are not required to be listed on product labels. Responsible manufacturers can use purification methods to remove these impurities, but consumers have no way of knowing if this has been done.
- Heating creates toxic compounds: When the propylene glycol (PG) and vegetable glycerin (VG) used in e-liquids are heated to high temperatures by the vaping device’s heating coil, they can break down into carcinogenic carbonyl compounds.
- Formaldehyde: This known Group 1 carcinogen is a thermal breakdown product of propylene glycol and glycerol in e-cigarettes, especially at high temperatures.
- Acetaldehyde and acrolein: These are other toxic carbonyls created during the thermal degradation of e-liquid ingredients.
- Enhanced absorption: As a penetration enhancer, PEG makes it easier for other ingredients to pass through the skin. In vapor form, this property may facilitate the absorption of other harmful chemicals into the body.
Health risks of inhaling toxic vapor
Inhaling these chemical vapors can cause a number of health issues, with risks potentially increasing with long-term use.
- Lung and respiratory damage: Inhalation can cause inflammation of the airways, damage lung tissue, and lead to chronic respiratory illnesses. This can occur from exposure to chemicals like formaldehyde and propylene glycol.
- Cancer: The presence of carcinogens like formaldehyde, ethylene oxide, and 1,4-dioxane raises concerns about an increased risk of various cancers, including lung cancer.
- Oral health problems: The chemical vapors can damage epithelial cells in the mouth, potentially leading to oral ulcers or oral cancer.
- Other health effects: Exposure to chemicals like ethylene oxide can harm the nervous system, and allergic reactions to PEG-containing products are possible. ” Google AI OverviewStay informed and spread the news. Everyone needs to know what is bad for the body and to avoid risky, toxic substances!