Reasons To Stop Smoking
Non-smokers probably think it’s obvious that smoking is bad for you. You don’t have to tell them what good reasons there are to quit smoking, but smokers need to have the message reinforced. This is not because of ignorance or a death-wish: a smoker just needs to be encouraged and inspired.
Non-smokers should treat smokers with a bit of grace and mercy, presenting benefits of smoking cessation not in order to lay blame and judgment but to help them on the track to better health and more fulfilling lives. Here are some of the most compelling reasons to give up cigarettes.
Better Health
After a number of years, smokers are likely to have laid down the foundations of certain conditions which are irreversible but which are made more or less severe depending on one choice: whether or not to smoke. Asthma, bronchitis, COPD, and emphysema are chronic and potentially life-threatening conditions.
Smokers suffer from more incidents of pneumonia than non-smokers. They get out of breath more easily which prevents them from partaking in activities which would further enhance their state of health.
A brisk walk might be out of the question, even one without hills, and that’s about the minimum level of exercise possible. If walking is tough, imagine trying to run even a few feet to chase after one’s children, to keep up with an energetic pet, or to get out of a sudden rain shower. If one stops early enough these conditions might not start at all.
Better Smelling
Smokers don’t notice what they smell like: they have become immune to an odor they live with. Those who live closest to a smoker grow accustomed to a certain scent. Acquaintances, clients, potential dates, patients: if they and their families don’t smoke, that toxic odor is intense and unpleasant. It’s a potential hurdle to business, social life, and even romance.
Ex-smokers discover what others have endured after a few months when their sense of smell returns full force. They pick up the nauseating aroma of cigarette smoke on the clothing, hair, and skin of people who still smoke and wonder how they didn’t notice before.
Bigger Bank Account
A pack of cigarettes in the United States can cost as much as $15. That lasts, on average, a single day for the regular smoker. Each week, that amounts to over $100 and in a single year a smoker has spent over $5,000. When a smoker gives up his cigarettes he can put that money away in order to invest in a new car, to save part of a down payment on a home, or to go on an expensive holiday he has always dreamed of.
Better Tasting
Smokers aren’t able to taste food the way non-smokers can. This is, in part, due to being unable to smell but also due to damage to taste buds. Consider a vacation which takes in culinary locations: tapas bars in Spain, Parisian cafés, or Belgian chocolatiers. You can really enjoy gourmet foods with a new friend you couldn’t have met when you smelled liked cigarettes and didn’t have any money to spend on holidays.