Chesterfield Hypnosis

Smoking Statistics

There are Government statistics to back up the many reasons for stopping smoking, but I won't bore you with those. However, I would like to bring to your attention the following information, which I hope you will find interesting and informative.

Constituents of Tobacco Smoke

Nicotine is the most widely known chemical in tobacco smoke, but many people are amazed to discover that there are well over 4,000 other chemicals produced when tobacco burns. Most of these have incomprehensible names and are really only known to scientists and chemical analysts. Listed below, though, are some of the more well known ones.

Cadmium	Carbon Monoxide	Carbon Dioxide
Ammonia	Propane	Methane
Methanol	Nickel Compounds	Benzene
Isoprene	Hydrogen Sulphide	Acreolin
Acetone	Hydrocyanic Acid	Hydrogen Cyanide
Cresol	Methyl Nitrate	Nitrogen Oxide
DDT	Pyridine	Tar
Formaldehyde	Butadione	Nicotine

Details of the Constituents of Tobacco Smoke

Nicotine - A highly toxic nerve poison. It constricts the arteries and at the same time increases adrenaline production. It raises the blood pressure, in order to overcome the extra constriction in the narrowed arteries, and stimulates the entire nervous system. It is a powerful stimulant and does not relax you. In some areas of the world it is used by veterinarians to destroy sick animals and is highly efficient at this task. A dosage of one fifty-thousandth of a gram is ample to kill an adult. If the arteries are already narrowed as a result of ageing or a build-up of cholesterol, then the extra constriction can be very serious and may result in amputation or even sudden death.

Hydrogen Sulphide - A poisonous chemical with a characteristic smell of bad eggs.

Methanol - A fatal poison. Small internal doses, prolonged exposure of the skin to the liquid or continued inhalation of the vapour may cause blindness.

Acetone - A form of paint stripper better known as nail varnish remover.

Ammonia - Ammonia solutions are used to clean, bleach and deodorise; to etch aluminium ; to saponify (convert to soap) oils and fats; and in chemical manufacture. Ammonia and ammonia vapours are irritating - prolonged exposure and inhalation cause serious injury and may be fatal.

DDT - Once considered a wonder pesticide, now banned from commercial use because of its lethal side effects.

Benzene - An aromatic chemical, proven to be a major carcinogen.

Hydrogen Cyanide - Used in America in the gas chamber.

Carbon Monoxide - Present in car exhaust gases. Causes death if inhaled for a relatively short time, because it inhibits oxygen from entering the bloodstream.

Pyridine - A solvent and waterproofing agent.

Formaldehyde - This is better known as embalming fluid

In addition to these chemicals, given off purely as a result of the tobacco leaf burning, there are various additional unwholesome substances that may be present as a result of the plantation environment and the conditions in which the harvested leaf is stored and shipped...... I will leave this to your imagination!

Beneficial Health Changes when you Stop Smoking

Stop smoking and the body will begin to repair the damage done almost immediately, kick-starting a series of beneficial health changes that continue for years.

Time Since Quitting	Beneficial Health Changes That Take Place
20 minutes	Blood pressure and pulse rate return to normal
8 hours	Nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in blood reduce by half, oxygen lvels return to normal
24 hours	Carbon monoxide will be eliminated from the body. Thelungs start to clear out mucus and other toxins
48 hours	There is no nicotine left in the body
72 hours	Breathing becomes easier
2-12 weeks	Circulation improves
3-9 months	Coughs, wheezing and breathing problems improve as lung function is considerably increased
2 years	Risk of a heart attack falls to half that of a smoker
10 years	Risk of lung cancer falls to half of that of a smoker
15 years	Risk of a heart attack falls to the same as someone who has never smoked

Financial Cost of Smoking Cigarettes

Number Per Day	Cost per year £	Cost over 10 years £	Cost over 15 years £	Cost over 25 years £	Cost over 35 years £
10	910.00	9100.00	13650.00	22750.00	31850.00
15	1355.00	13550.00	20325.00	33875.00	47425.00
20	1820.00	18200.00	27300.00	45500.00	63700.00
30	2730.00	27300.00	40950.00	68250.00	95550.00

The above calculations have been based on the cost of a packet of 20 cigarettes being £5.00 per packet. At today's prices just think what else you could do with the money saved!

Additional Information

Smoking kills around five times more people in the UK than road traffic accidents, other accidents, poisoning and overdose, murder and manslaughter, suicide and HIV infection all put together.
About half of all regular cigarette smokers will eventually be killed by their habit.
Smoking causes about 30% of all cancer deaths (including around 84% of lung cancer deaths), 17% of all heart disease deaths and at least 80% of deaths from bronchitis and emphysema.
Polls show that people underestimate the health risks of smoking and the effects of passive smoking.
Smokers who smoke between 1 and 14 cigarettes a day have eight times the risk of dying from lung cancer compared to non-smokers. Smokers who smoke more than 25 cigarettes a day have 25 times this risk compared to non-smokers.
Cigarette smoking increases the risk of having a heart attack by two or three times, compared with the risk to non-smokers.
About 90% of cases of peripheral vascular disease which lead to amputation of one or both legs are caused by smoking – about 2000 amputations a year in the UK.
Women who smoke and take the contraceptive pill have 10 times the risk of a heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular disease compared with those who take the pill but are non-smokers. Smoking has also been linked with an increased likelihood of menstrual problems (although not with PMT).
One cigarette knocks 11 minutes off a smoker’s life.
Every day 330 people die in the UK from smoking – the equivalent to a jumbo jet crashing and killing all its passengers.
Smoking causes premature wrinkling, yellowing teeth and bad breath.
More than 17,000 children under five are admitted to hospital every year because of the effects of passive smoking.
Smokers have a higher risk of developing the chronic skin condition psoriasis.
Smoking leads to increased risk of miscarriage and cot death.
Smoking has made 120,000 young men impotent in Brittain.
Smokers in their 40s have as many facial wrinkles as non-smokers in their 60s.
Female smokers are more susceptible to lung cancer than male smokers.
41,000 women die every year from smoking. That’s 112 every day.
Stopping smoking increases life expectancy with immediate effect – stopping at age 60 gives an average 3 extra years of life, and stopping at age 30 gives an average 10 extra years of life.
Non-smokers now live longer because of economic and social development and medical advances but smokers still die as young as ever.
Smoking, the brain and stress – within 10 seconds of inhaling cigarette smoke, nicotine reaches the brain and begins t act upon a specific set of neurones – the working cells of the brain. On each of these neurons are receptors, which are like slots or keyholes onto which brain chemicals called neurotransmitters attach, causing the brain to transmit messages. Nicotine fits into one of the receptors acted upon by acetylcholine, one of several neurotransmitters in the brain. This causes the brain to release two other substances, noradrenalin and dopamine, that act as stimulants.
Smokers often report that smoking tobacco helps to relieve feelings of anxiety and stress. However, smokers exhibit higher levels of stress in their lives than non-smokers. The high smoking prevalence among people facing social and economic deprivation suggests that smoking may be used as a stress coping mechanism. However, the stress reducing properties of nicotine seem more illusory than real.
Nicotine stimulates the brain to release dopamine, which is associated with pleasurable feelings, and smokers quickly develop regular smoking patterns. Eventually, smokers need increasing levels of nicotine to feel “normal”. As the nicotine content in their blood drops below a certain level, they begin to crave for a cigarette. This craving makes the smoker feel “stressed” until the craving is relieved. The relief felt when this craving is finally satisfied is the feeling that smokers commonly mistake as “relaxing”.
Smoking makes your skin thinner.
The “Smoker’s Face” – The distinctive characteristics of a smoker’s face which tend to make people look older than they are, such as:

» Lines or wrinkles on the face, typically radiating at right angles from the upper and lower lips or corners of the eyes, deep lines on the cheeks, or numerous shallow lines on the cheeks and lower jaw.
» A subtle gauntness of the facial features with prominence of the underlying bony contours.