Introduction

You can eat healthy and exercise every day, but healthy behaviour means little if you continue to smoke and abuse alcohol. Almost every single organ of the human body is harmed by smoking and drinking excessive alcohol. Learn about the harmful effects and ways to quit from the articles in this section.

 

Expert Articles

Keeping away from vices.. let's make it easy

Bad habits are impulses.. so instead of controlling them, you often end up repeating them.

Even though you recognize the stress they cause in your life... and even though you make promises to change your ways... again and again, you repeat the same tired patterns!

That's because a habit (like drinking alcohol), by definition, is an acquired pattern of behavior that has become almost involuntary as a result of frequent repetition.

For those of you who prefer a more visual definition, read this story:

A teacher takes a bit of lightweight thread and wraps it one time around a student's wrists.

He tells the class, This string represents the power of doing something one time. Can you break the string?

The student easily breaks the thread with a small flick of his wrists. The teacher then wraps the string around the student's wrists many times and repeats the challenge to break it.

Despite repeated efforts, the lightweight thread is too strong to break.

His teacher says, Now you see the power of repeated actions… habits. It takes more than mere willpower and personal strength to break them. It takes a change in the way you think about the problem.

Bad habits prevent you from reaching your potential. They are self-inflicted punishments that drain you of motivation, time, and money. And they hold you back from living the great life you know you can achieve.

Just think of all the times you've said something like...

The diet starts Monday -- and I'll stick to it this time, I SWEAR

Smoking is a nasty habit and is ruining my health. This will absolutely be my last cigarette pack.

That does it! I'm cutting up the credit cards once and for all and not wasting any more money on things I really don't need.

Sound familiar? You're not alone.

The reality is most people try to break habits backwards; they try to physically change their behaviors before they've changed their mental ones.

The result? You get so stressed out when denied the habit that has given you comfort in the past, you cannot help but cling to it and repeat it in the present.

Losing bad habits, especially one like drinking alcohol requires you to change the way you think before you can change the way you act.

The good news is you can EASILY CHANGE your habits

Fortunately, there is a solution to breaking your bad habits!

Alcohol rehabilitation has suffered needlessly at the expense of a leaden ideology, and today many people continue to misunderstand alcoholism at its core. If you have ever heard that addiction is a “disease,” you may have found yourself falling into the same trap of treating it like something alien to your own psychology. In fact, all addictions are integral to who we are, and that means they can be understood and cured with proper psychological care.

The best alcohol rehab programs give you dedicated attention by tailoring custom-made courses of therapy throughout your stay. Many offer different approaches simultaneously, augmenting the basic therapy sessions with such diverse approaches as meditation and massage. The point, as with any rehab, is to get at the heart of that addiction by exploring the emotional past of the addict.

Many people tend to scoff at such ideas, believing addiction to be only a physical or genetic issue. In fact, a number of peer-reviewed studies indicate just the opposite: although there may be some slight genetic component, alcoholism is far better correlated with emotional distress. Treat such emotional realities in the proper context and you may discover the urge to drink magically dissolves.

If you want to learn more, try searching the Web for alcohol rehab treatment that provides a good mix of group therapy and more private, individual care. You may come away astonished at how easy it is to manage the feelings you now understand.

Alcohol & Tobacco

ARE THEY PARTNERS IN CRIME ?

Extensive research supports the popular observation that smokers drink and drinkers smoke. Moreover, the heaviest alcohol consumers are also the heaviest consumers of tobacco.

Concurrent use of these drugs poses a significant public health threat. A survey of persons treated for alcoholism and other drug addictions revealed that 222 of 845 subjects had died over a 12-year period; one-third of these deaths were attributed to alcohol-related causes, and one-half were related to smoking .

The Co-Occurrence of Alcoholism and Smoking …a few alarming facts

  • Between 80 and 95 percent of alcoholics smoke cigarettes
  • Approximately 70 percent of alcoholics are

    heavy smokers (i.e., smoke more than one pack of cigarettes per day), compared with 10 percent of the general population

  • Drinking influences smoking more than smoking influences drinking.
  • Nevertheless, smokers are 1.32 times as likely to consume alcohol as are nonsmokers
  • Most adult users of alcohol or tobacco first tried these drugs during their early teens
  • Among smoking alcoholics, the initiation of regular cigarette smoking typically precedes the onset of alcoholism by many years, although data are inconsistent
  • Adolescents who begin smoking are 3 times more likely to begin using alcohol
  • and smokers are 10 times more likely to develop alcoholism than are nonsmokers (6).

Smoking and Alcohol together... why ?

  • Either drug may increase the desired (rewarding) effects of the other, or
  • either may decrease the toxic or unpleasant (aversive) effects of the other.

These interactions involve processes of reinforcement or tolerance, as described below.

(1) Reinforcement. Reinforcement refers to the physiological processes by which a behavior--such as consumption of a drug--becomes habitual. A key process in reinforcement for some drugs occurs when nerve cells release the chemical messenger dopamine into a small area of the brain called the nucleus acumens following consumption of the drug . Nicotine is the primary ingredient of tobacco that triggers reinforcement.

(2)Tolerance. Tolerance is decreased sensitivity to a given effect of a drug such that increased doses are needed to achieve the same effect. For example, smokers may reduce their tobacco intake when they begin to feel its aversive effects (e.g., increased heart rate, nervousness). Alcohol's sedating effects may mitigate these effects of nicotine, facilitating continued tobacco use .

The risk of Cancer from both

Smoking and excessive alcohol use are risk factors for cardiovascular and lung diseases and for some forms of cancer. The risks of cancer of the mouth, throat, or esophagus for the smoking drinker are more than the sum of the risks posed by these drugs individually. For example, compared with the risk for nonsmoking nondrinkers, the approximate relative risks for:

  • developing mouth and throat cancer are 7 times greater for those who use tobacco,
  • 6 times greater for those who use alcohol,
  • and 38 times greater for those who use both tobacco and alcohol

But how?

  • Approximately 4,000 chemical substances are generated by the chemical reactions that occur in the intense heat of a burning cigarette
  • A group of these chemicals, collectively known as tar, is carried into the lungs on inhaled smoke.
  • The bloodstream then distributes the components of tar throughout the body.
  • Certain enzymes found mainly in the liver (i.e., microsomal enzymes) convert some ingredients of tar into chemicals that can cause cancer.
  • Long-term alcohol consumption can activate some such microsomal enzymes, greatly increasing their activity and contributing to smoking-related cancers .
  • Microsomal enzymes are found not only in the liver but also in the lungs and digestive tract, which are major portals of entry for tobacco smoke.
  • The esophagus may be particularly susceptible, because it lacks an efficient mechanism for removing toxic substances produced by activated microsomal enzymes

Finally, alcoholics frequently exhibit deficiencies of zinc and vitamin A,
substances that confer some protection against cancer .

We all are aware of the frequently quoted : Prevention is better than
cure and Where there is a will there is way... .then why wait ?

FAQs

Many doubts and queries in mind then just simply go through these FAQ and be free from it.

1. If I have trouble with drinking, can't I simply reduce my alcohol use without stopping altogether?

That depends. If you are diagnosed as an alcoholic, the answer is "no." Studies show that nearly all alcoholics who try to merely cut down on drinking are unable to do so indefinitely. Instead, cutting out alcohol (that is, abstaining) is nearly always necessary for successful recovery.

However, if you are not alcoholic but have had alcohol-related problems, you may be able to limit the amount you drink.

2. How Can a Person Get Help for an Alcohol Problem?

You can visit the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment for treatment. Many people also benefit from support groups.

3. What is a Safe Level of Drinking?

Most adults can drink moderate amounts of alcohol up to two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women and older people and avoid alcohol-related problems.

However, certain people should not drink at all. They include women who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant; people who plan to drive or engage in other activities requiring alertness and skill; people taking certain medications, people with medical conditions that can be worsened by drinking and people under the age of 21.

4. Is Alcohol Good for Your Heart?

If you are a non drinker, you should not start drinking only to benefit your heart. Protection against coronary heart disease may be obtained through regular physical activity and a low-fat diet. And if you are pregnant, planning to become pregnant, have been diagnosed as alcoholic, or have any medical condition that could make alcohol use harmful, you should not drink.

Even for those who can drink safely and choose to do so, moderation is the key. Heavy drinking can actually increase the risk of heart failure, stroke, and high blood pressure, as well as cause many other medical problems, such as liver cirrhosis.

5. Smoking is my personal problem. Why others need to be bothered?

Well, first of all, your smoking is a problem for all of the people who care about you. They don't like to see you harming yourself, and they would be thrilled if you would quit.

When you smoke, your cigarettes give off smoke into the environment. That smoke is harmful to other people's health. It's especially harmful to children and that's important, because in another ten years or so, you may be starting a family

Women who smoke can even harm their children before they're born because smoking during pregnancy is bad for the baby.

Myths & Facts

A confused mind with confused possible answers then just go below and find the true answers and facts towards healthy eating.

Low-tar or light cigarettes safe.

There is no safe tobacco product. The use of any tobacco product can cause cancer and other adverse health effects. The poisonous ingredients in cigarettes aren't just limited to tar and nicotine. A typical cigarette contains lead, ammonia (a household cleaner), arsenic (used in rat poison), benzene (used in making gas), butane gas, carbon monoxide (a poisonous gas), DDT (a banned insecticide), and polonium 210 (cancer-causing radioactive element). To reduce your risk for lung cancer, stroke, heart disease, and reproductive health problems, avoid all tobacco products and exposure to second-hand smoke.

Alcohol gives you energy..

This statement is false. Alcohol is a depressant, and can actually make you sleepy. It directly affects nervous system and slows down your motor skills which control the way you think, speak, move and react.

Drinking wine instead of beer won't make a beer-belly.

It is a common misconception that wine contains fewer calories than beer. It is simply not true. One glass of wine (five ounces) contains about 130 kilocalories whereas one bottle of beer (12 ounces) has about 150 kilocalories. Therefore, wine contains more calories on a per-ounce basis. As a general rule, the sweeter the wine, the more sugar and calories it contains.

Remember this next time when you are contemplating a second helping of alcohol: calories from alcohol tend to be stored as fat in the abdomen. So, if you drink alcohol on a regular basis (regardless of the kinds of alcohol), watch out for the beer-belly!

Smoking will help me lose weight.

Starting to smoke is not associated with a decrease in body weight. Since it is a nerve stimulant, the same as caffeine and alcohol, you don't end up eating wrong food as stress reliever. It also depresses hunger which altogether leads to calorie as well nutrient deficient.

Then you realize that instead of a better-looking body, what you have is a smelly, dirty, unattractive, expensive, dangerous addiction. You're horrified.

Tips

  • If you're really trying to quit smoking one of prime things you need to learn how to do is believe in yourself. Have faith that you will actually quit your habit. Try to note down Believe that you can quit and note down why you want to take this step(the benefits of quitting: live longer, feel better, for your family, save money, smell better etc )
  • Ask your family and friends to support your decision to quit.
  • Decide on a date on which you decide to quit and stick to the same
  • Talk with your doctor about quitting. Often, support and guidance from a physician is said to be helpful in quitting
  • Cut back on the number of cigarettes gradually. You can do this by deciding on the number of cigarettes you intend to smoke everyday until you decide to quit, make sure you reduce the number of cigarettes you smoke everyday; buy only one pack at a time; change brands; give your cigarettes to someone else and so on. Largely, you will have to find out what works for you since each person works differently and has different motivations.
  • Find another smoker who is trying to quit, and help each other with positive words and by lending an ear when quitting becomes difficult
  • Learn what triggers your desire for a cigarette. It could be anything - stress, the end of a meal, arrival at work, entering a bar, etc. Try as much as you can to avoid these triggers or decide alternative ways to deal with the triggers.
  • Whenever you have a craving for a cigarette, instead of lighting up write down whatever you're thinking/feeling at that point of time. Keep this "journal" with you at all times.
  • After you quit, plan to celebrate the milestones in your journey to becoming a non-smoker