 |
|
|
|
 Rick Morris celebrates during a workout with the Atlanta Hawks in February.
April 7th, 2012
12:00 PM ET
10 surprising benefits of quitting smokingRick Morris is one of seven CNN viewers participating in the CNN Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge. He quit smoking on an episode of "Sanjay Gupta, M.D." and has been smoke-free since. About two months ago, I quit smoking. At the time there were many reasons influencing my decision to finally choose a smoke-free lifestyle. I was worried about my health. I had high blood pressure. My doctor and everyone I knew was encouraging me to kick the habit. My family history is one of lung cancer and diabetes. The list goes on and on. Now that I've been without tobacco for the past couple months (63 days, to be exact), I've noticed some changes in the way I'm living. All are positive and are in direct relation to my body's depletion of those nasty chemicals I've called friends for the last 12 years. So I thought I would list those changes and explain how I have been affected by each. Though my list is restricted to 10, it is by no means an exhaustive one. 1. No more chronic cough: All smokers know what "smoker's cough" is. I didn't realize how annoying this was until I stopped coughing all the time. After about a week being smoke-free, I noticed I didn't have to clear my throat every few minutes. I recall plenty of times when I was at a function or meeting and needed to cough so badly, but couldn't because I knew it would be rude and interrupting to those around me. It's like an insect hovering in your throat – not touching, just drying everything between your tongue and your stomach – and you can't do a darn thing about it. 2. The smell: I didn't know I smelled so badly until I was around other smokers. Their clothes, home, car, even their pets reek! About a week after I smoked my last cancer stick, my daughter and her boyfriend, a smoker, dropped by for a visit. Their dog always peels for the door and makes it into the house first. Yeah, I actually smelled the odor of cigarettes coming from the dog. 3. No more cleaning butts: I swear that cigarette butts would multiply when I wasn't looking. I once placed a butt can out back on the patio and initially used it as intended. Pretty soon, I was too lazy to walk down the steps to the can and just started flipping cigarette butts out into the yard, in the area of the butt can (as if I were shooting a jump shot). I rarely scored. Eventually, they were lying everywhere. So much that I would just wait until the weekends to "clean" them with the leaf blower. Nasty, nasty, nasty! 4. It's just an extra $200 per month: Really, the extra money wasn't even noticed, as I can easily spend that on a night grilling on the patio (I love king crab and filet mignon, and only the finest Belgium beer!) So I really didn't look at this as a true benefit of not smoking. But, with the price of cigarettes reaching about $6 a pack in my area – and up to $11 in other areas of the nation – I discovered this adds up. And, it was clear the price of tobacco was just going to continue to rise. So, I got out my calculator. $6 a day multiplied by 365 days in the year. Comes out to $2,190. Looking at this long term, that's about $122,000 over the next 56 years (when I turn 100). Assuming cigarettes continue to increase in price at the present rate, then it's easy to see that number growing to half-million dollars. Invested wisely, I'm sure I can leave someone a big, fat payday! 5. Lost productivity: Sure, we all need a break or two during the work day. But I realized I was taking about 20 of these 5-minute breaks. In all honesty, each was probably about 10 minutes. About two-thirds of my breaks were when I was at work (I have a home-based web development business). So, that's more than 2 hours of breaking as opposed to working. How in the world was I getting my work done? I have since realized that I wasn't. 6. Food tastes much better: I don't know if it has something to do with a cleaner mouth, but food simply tastes better. I also find that I use less salt. I've heard on several occasions that if one quits smoking one gains weight, but I would warn people from using the weight-gain excuse as a viable argument when attempting to become smoke-free. Trading one bad habit for another isn't the way to go. 7. Non-smoking or non-smoking?: I think the air-line industry coined the phrase: "Smoking, or non-smoking?" And, I think it was the first group to eliminate cigarette smoking from a certain area (the airplane). Today, it's almost preposterous to think we once smoked during an international flight on a 747! "Non-smoking or non-smoking?" seems to be the rhetorical, unasked question wherever you go these days. It's understood. There will be no smoking here, or here, or there, or over there, or in there, or... well, you get the point. Unlike the Golden era of the 1920s and 1930s, when smoking was an upper-class hobby, a smoker's world is an unfriendly one today.Since the airlines quit asking that redundant question, smoking has been eliminated from virtually all public places. Restaurants, high-school football games, town parks, even bars and drinking establishments have become smoke-free. For smokers, drinking a beer without a cigarette is like playing pool without a beer! Whether smokers realize it or not, the very fact that one uses tobacco limits them in myriad ways – especially socially. I don't have to worry about that anymore. 8. Dry, sticky contact lenses: As a wearer of these miracle discs of ocular health, I know what smoking does to your contact lenses. Smoke makes them dry. They become cloudy and you're constantly rubbing your eyes. Eventually, your lenses get to the point where you must get them out. Fortunately, I wear disposable contact lenses. All I had to do was pop in a new set. But, at a couple dollars per lens, this was costing me. How to solve this annoying problem? Quit smoking! 9. Physical appearance: In the few months I've not smoked, I can tell my overall physical appearance has improved. My skin isn't dry and wrinkly. My bit of gray hair is actually going brown. My self-confidence in speaking directly to someone isn't hindered by my desire to turn at an angle because of smoker's breath. 10. Bye, bye yellow teeth: No matter how hard I brushed or swished fluoride, I couldn't seem to keep perfectly white teeth. "It's because you smoke," my dentist proclaimed. "And, unless you do something about that, your dental health will continue to deteriorate, thus affecting your overall health." Bad teeth can lead to serious health effects throughout your body. Yesterday I had a cleaning at the dentist, and plan to keep my teeth white and healthy from now on. soundoff (2,380 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 Next »
Next entry »What the Yuck: What's wrong with my nipples?
« Previous entryArsenic in chicken, or just feathers?
|
  About this blog
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.
 |
|
|
|
Hmm is anyone else having problems with the pictures on this blog loading?
I'm trying to figure out if its a problem on my end or if it's the
blog. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
levitra football https://uslevitraanna.com/ side effects of levitra
I have read several just right stuff here. Certainly value bookmarking for
revisiting. I surprise how a lot attempt you put to make such a great informative
web site.
chloroquine tablet https://chloroquineorigin.com/ chloroquine phosphate side effects
erectile male enhancement https://viagrawithdapoxetine.com/# viagra online
canadian drug stores cialis [url=https://asciled.com/ ]cheap cialis generic[/url] cialis uk
Hi there to every body, it's my first pay a visit of this weblog; this website includes remarkable and really excellent stuff designed for visitors.
What a material of un-ambiguity and preserveness of precious familiarity about unpredicted feelings.
ivermectin dosage [url=https://stromectolivermectine.com/]where to get ivermectin[/url]
can i buy sildenafil over the counter in canada https://eunicesildenafilcitrate.com/ sildenafil 100mg price india
how long is viagra effective http://gensitecil.com/ is there a viagra for women
Wow this blog is very nice!
https://www.cougcenter.com/users/Nick's20Air20Conditioning20And20Heating2020202020202020202020202020-
board of pharmacy https://canadianeve21.com/ Nizoral
very nice! Ireally like your blog
http://www.daslot.net/457/posts/8-Business-to-Business-/232–Business-Opportunities/74810-Nick-s-Air-Conditioning-And-Heating.html
where to buy sildenafil canada https://eunicesildenafilcitrate.com/ buy online sildenafil citrate
walmart cialis http://cileve.com/ take cialis the correct way
discount erectile medication https://canadaerectiledysfunctionpills.com/ erectile machines
Spot on with this write-up, I honestly think this site needs a lot more attention. I’ll probably be back again to see more, thanks for the advice!
http://www.mosin-nagant.net/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=www.meganleary.com
cialis at canadian pharmacy https://canadacialisstore.com/ buy generic cialis, canadian
Hi my family member! I want to say that this post is
amazing, great written and include almost all vital infos.
I'd like to see more posts like this .
mexican pharmacies online [url=http://canadianeve21.com/ ]canadian pharma companies[/url] Doxycycline
Hi there! This is my first visit to your blog!
We are a group of volunteers and starting a new project
in a community in the same niche. Your blog provided us useful information to work on. You
have done a marvellous job!
Hi friends, fastidious piece of writing and nice urging commented at
this place, I am really enjoying by these.
canadian pharmacies [url=http://uspharmus.com/ ]Viagra Professional[/url] online pharmacies
These are in fact wonderful ideas in on the topic of blogging.
You have touched some pleasant factors here. Any way keep up
wrinting.
dapoxetine usa priligy 60 mg
I blog frequently and I genuinely appreciate your content.
Your article has truly peaked my interest. I will book mark your blog and keep checking
for new details about once per week. I subscribed to your
RSS feed as well.
chloroquine phosphate vs chloroquine sulphate https://chloroquineorigin.com/ what is chloroquine used for
pills viagra pharmacy 100mg https://uspharmus.com/ Flexeril
Confido http://onlinecanda21.com/ discount drugs online pharmacy
is it safe to get viagra from canada https://canadaviagrastore.com/ best viagra pills 25 mg canada pharmarcy
Remarkable! Its really remarkable piece of writing, I have got much clear idea on the topic of from this paragraph.
buy sildenafil 100mg online comparison https://eunicesildenafilcitrate.com/ sildenafil pharmacy online
Why people still make use of to read news papers when in this technological world all is existing on web?
cialis 10 mg where to buy http://cileve.com/ cialis for sale toronto
avana buy avanafil canada
viagra canada over the counter https://canadaviagrastore.com/ viagra sale canada
Thanks for wonderful information I used to be in search of this info for my mission.
http://payelectricco.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=https://www.federatedfinancial.com/
chroloquine https://chloroquineorigin.com/ chloroquine amazon
avana tablet avanafil 50
I am curious to find out what blog system you happen to be utilizing?
I'm having some minor security problems with my latest site and I'd like to find something more safeguarded.
Do you have any suggestions?
Hey there great website! Does running a blog similar to this require a great deal of work?
I've very little understanding of computer
programming however I was hoping to start my own blog soon. Anyways, if you
have any suggestions or techniques for new blog
owners please share. I know this is off topic nevertheless
I simply wanted to ask. Kudos!
Why people still make use of to read news papers
when in this technological globe all is available on net?
Hey, I think your blog might be having browser compatibility issues.
When I look at your blog site in Firefox, it looks fine but when opening in Internet
Explorer, it has some overlapping. I just wanted to give you a quick
heads up! Other then that, wonderful blog!
I all the time emailed this blog post page to all
my associates, because if like to read it next my contacts will
too.
I simply couldn't go away your web site before suggesting that I really loved the usual
info a person provide on your guests? Is going to be again continuously in order to
check out new posts
Fine way of describing, and good article to take data about my presentation subject, which i am going to convey in school.
Hello! Would you mind if I share your blog with my myspace group?
There's a lot of folks that I think would really appreciate your content.
Please let me know. Thanks
เมก้าเกมตู้ออนไลน์ อย่าเข้าใจผิดรู้สึกว่าเกมเป็นเกมสล็อต เนื่องจากว่าเกมตู้นั้นเป็น เกมอาร์เขต ที่นิยมเล่นกันอย่างยิ่งในอดีต
ทางค่ายก็ได้เก็บมาให้ผู้เล่นไม่ว่าจะเป็น แข่งรถ แข่งขันเรือ
แข่งม้า และก็อีกเยอะมาก ผู้เล่นจะหวนคิดถึงยุคตอนที่จะต้องไปต่อแถวเพื่อที่จะเล่นแต่ละตู้นั้น ช่างน่าพิจารณาถึงซะจริงๆ
I do not even know the way I ended up right here, however I
thought this submit was once great. I do not realize who
you're however certainly you're going to a famous blogger in the event you
are not already. Cheers!