Nicotine Is A Gateway Drug

Don't think that smoking tobacco or e-cigarettes is just a harmless endeavor to prove yourself cool to your so-called "friends". According to the gateway drug model, epidemiological evidence suggests that most illicit drug users report use of tobacco products or alcohol prior to illicit drug use.

And do you think that the corporations that manufacture these products care what happens to you? Of course not, sweetheart. You're just a tool they're using to line their own pockets. This time it's just a smoke, but what happens next time?

Have You Become A Firestarter?

Are you still trying to become a tobacco industry prodigy? Didn't I say that nothing good ever comes from a nicotine addiction? Don't play their game, and you won't earn that terrible moniker.

How Addictive Is Nicotine?

Let's see what this brave woman who was willing to freely share her story with everyone has to say about the difficulties and consequences of a nicotine addiction.

Unfortunately, Terrie finally succumbed to her smoking-induced cancer this week at age fifty-three.

You were a hero to many of us, and your bravery helped others avoid the same fate. You've made a definite impact in peoples' lives and you've left a terrific legacy Terrie. RIP knowing that you did good!


Source: CDC: Tips From Former Smokers

Don't Let Your Shit Become Fucked Up

This week marks the 10th anniversary of the death of Warren Zevon, the legendary singer/songwriter whom I admired not only for his musical talents, but for his great sense of humor too. Warren passed away from lung cancer at age 56 due to mesothelioma, but exacerbated by years of being a smoker.

Here's what Warren thought after receiving his frightful diagnosis at such a relatively young age.



Folks, don't let your shit become fucked up. Don't let it happen to you before your time is due. Make sure to see your physician for a yearly check-up, and for God's sake, attempt to quit smoking before it's too late, and you find yourself writing a song about the consequences.

Listen To The Lovely Felicia

Not only should you listen to the smart and beautiful Felicia about the financial costs of smoking, but consider the guilt-producing evil-eye that you'll get from your children who know that your smoking will also affect them. Smoking IS NOT worth the costs. If you're upset about it, call to enlist some help.


Source: New York State Smokers' Quitline

You Can't Hide Your Nicotine Addiction

Because I'm a healthcare professional, I tend to notice the physical signs of sickness or disease in people that others don't see, unless they specifically know what to look for.

As such, I'm writing this post because I happened to watch from my window as one of my neighbors walked her dog the other morning. I live in a large complex and haven't met her before, and don't know anything about her. But she was attractive, had a slim body, and looked to be in about her mid-60s.

But because I've been trained to focus on certain signs, and even though she was about 50 feet away outside my window, I could tell that she was a long-term smoker. Her skin and hair gave her away. I started thinking to myself that she was probably only in her 50s, and that her smoking made her look much older then her actual age.

She had that grayish/orange-colored hue to her skin, and that dried-up, smoked-jerky wrinkling effect that can often be seen in many long-term smokers. Her hair was also thin and fragile-looking. It really detracted from her otherwise good looks.

As I continued to watch her walking her dog, I felt bad for her because I knew that she probably has a long-standing nicotine addiction that she can't kick, and because she probably doesn't realize how bad smoking cigarettes has affected her complexion.

I also felt bad because she's now around that age-stage where the serious healthcare consequences of her addiction are about to manifest themselves, and that she's probably in denial about it.

But you don't have to be a healthcare professional to see how smoking affects smokers in ways that other people can see. This video really does a good job of showing just what those signs look like. If this is what smoking does to the outside of one's body, just imagine what the inside must look like.


Source: Take A Stand Arizona

Be Free From Regret

Almost all tobacco use begins during youth and young adulthood. 88% of adults who smoke daily started smoking by age 18; 99% started by age 26.

Smoking of parents and other relatives leads to a substantial increase in the number of children who were determined to smoke in the future or were considering it.

Smoking of family members significantly reduces the efficiency of school educational anti-smoking activities aimed at children and young people.

Most smokers realize that they're addicted to nicotine, regret becoming smokers, and want to quit.

Would you want your children to follow in your footsteps of being a smoker? Of course not.

Be free from that regret. If you currently use tobacco, you can still make a difference.

Your best move, of course, is to attempt to quit smoking. Meanwhile, don’t use tobacco around your children, don’t offer it to them, and don’t leave it where they can easily get it.


Source: New Lung OC: Be Tobacco Free