Note: The contents of this blog are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice or substitute for professional care. For medical emergencies, dial 911!
Posts with tag Smoking
Posted Sep 6th 2007 4:31PM by Brian White
Filed under: Daily news
If you smoke during pregnancy or as a new mother, be advised that the nicotine being passed through to that infant in the form of breast milk (if you choose that route) may be hindering the sleep patterns of your child.
There's more -- a recent study also indicated
that nicotine in breast milk may also be causing naps to be shortened by a third -- which you'll probably see as your child is up more instead of sleeping more at that precious nap time.
The findings form this study lend even more support to giving up smoking during pregnancy or during the breastfeeding years. Lung cancer is not the only 'side effect' -- the health of your child is also in the mix now if you breast feed.
Posted Sep 6th 2007 10:46AM by Patricia Mayville-Cox
Filed under: Head and Neck cancer
Smoking increases the risk for head and neck cancers for both men and women. Cancers of the head and neck include cancers of the larynx, nasal passages, nose, oral cavity and pharynx.
According to the NCI, men are more than three times more likely than women to be diagnosed with head and neck cancer and more than twice as likely to die once diagnosed. A new
study published in
Cancer shows that while smoking plays a role in the development of these cancers in both men and women, smoking plays a greater role in women than in men.
Dr. Neal Freedman and colleagues from the NCI showed that the risk of smoking causing any type of head and neck cancer was significantly greater in women than in men. While 45 percent of such cancers could be linked to smoking in affected men, 75 percent could be attributed to smoking in affected women.
Posted Sep 3rd 2007 12:54PM by Brian White
Filed under: Lung Cancer, Smoking
To those who follow cancer on a daily basis, it may be no surprise that lung cancer is the leading type of cancer that kills globally. With billions of cigarettes being smoked each year in probably every country in the world, t should not come as a surprise that lung cancer occurs in such large numbers.
1.3 million lives each year are snuffed out due to lung cancer, yet my guess is that over a billion people continue to smoke worldwide. That's just a guess, but when 300 million smoke in China alone, it's probably a good guess.
If that weren't enough, about 60 percent of those diagnosed with lung cancer
die within a year of officially being diagnosed, and almost 75 percent die within two years. Are you still smoking or know someone who is? Read that last sentence again and again.
Posted Aug 30th 2007 2:37PM by Brian White
Filed under: Lung Cancer, Research
If you used to smoke but do no any longer, did you know that genes that have been 'activated' by your past smoking habit
remain on even long after you quit?
This conclusion comes from a new study that is being published today. Researchers analyzed gene activity in the respiratory tracts of 24 smokers, non-smokers and ex-smokers and came up with the suggestion that cancer-related genes just don't "reset" once a smoker stops smoking.
Although those quitters can breathe a sigh of relief (literally and figuratively), the propensity for lung cancer does not automatically diminish once you stop smoking, although it may decrease over time (years and years).
There are so many reasons to quit smoking these days, and this this is yet another good one, even though it may suggest otherwise.
Posted Aug 13th 2007 8:22AM by Patricia Mayville-Cox
Filed under: Prevention, Research, Daily news
Increased use of five preventative services would save more than 100,000 lives in the U.S. every year, according to Partnership for Prevention, a nonprofit health policy group.
The services and behaviors are taking a low dose of aspirin every day for the prevention of heart disease, offering more services to help smokers quit, offering more colorectal and breast cancer screenings and offering flu shots for those over 50. The report also uncovered racial disparities in the use of preventative care. For example, Hispanic smokers are 55 percent less likely than whites to get help to quit smoking and Asian-Americans are the least likely to take aspirin and get screened for breast and colorectal cancer.
The study found that 42,000 lives a year would be saved if 90 percent of smokers were advised to quit and offered cessation treatments. Only 28 percent of smokers get such services. An additional 14,000 lives would be saved if 90 percent of adults over 50 were screened for colorectal cancer. Breast cancer screening for all women over 40 would save another 4,000 lives, according to the report.
Posted Aug 12th 2007 8:00AM by Jacki Donaldson
Filed under: Prevention, Diets, Exercise, Nutrition, Vitamins and nutrients, Smoking, Sunday Seven
There are countless methods we can use for optimizing our health. Each of us can surely rattle off a bunch right now. Give it a try. Quick. Name three actions you can take to improve your body, your mind, your soul. Good. Now remember what you picked -- and make each one happen.
In a recent newspaper article, one journalist listed 25 ways to live a healthy life. They're all super ideas. But I only have space today for seven. Here they are. Stop back in two weeks, and I'll give you another seven.
Keep your weight in check Make sure your weight is appropriate for your height, age, sex, and body frame. The
American Institute for Cancer Research reports that having an ideal body mass, eating properly, and exercising can reduce the risk of cancer by 30 to 40 percent.
Continue reading Sunday Seven: Seven ways to fine-tune your health
Posted Jul 26th 2007 1:10PM by Patricia Mayville-Cox
Filed under: Smoking
On Wednesday,
U.S. senators said that cigarette warning labels should cover at least half of the package and use graphic photos of cancer and other health effects. This discussion was part of an ongoing debate on a bill that would allow the FDA to regulate but not ban tobacco products. The bill would also give the FDA power to restrict advertising, sales to minors and ingredient composition.
Under the bill, the FDA would have the authority to decide what the labels should say and show and where they should be placed. The bill is sponsored by Senator Ted Kennedy.
According to Harvard's Allan Brandt in an interview wtih the Washington Post, the current labels have lost "almost any public health benefits that they may once have had. They are seen as diluted and old, and they don't influence smokers."
About 52 senators support the bill and it is backed by the American Cancer Society and other health organizations.
What do you think? Do you think larger, more graphic warnings on cigarette packages would deter smoking in the U.S.?
Posted Jul 17th 2007 1:13PM by Patricia Mayville-Cox
Filed under: All Cancers, Bloggers
When my father was diagnosed with end-stage esophageal cancer, I'll never forget what a (very) distant acquaintance who lived in the same apartment building said to me. I ran into her in the hallway and she said that she had heard about my dad's illness and she was very sorry. Thank you, I said, so am I. Then she asked
the question.
"Did he smoke?" Thud went my heart, as it sank.
I believe there is a difference between policy and people. As a nation we should do all that we can from a public health perspective to reduce the risk of cancer, including encouraging and offering incentives to people to improve their health through lifestyle changes, including quitting smoking.
However, when it comes down to the individual level, to a real-life person, does it really matter if someone who is afflicted with cancer puffed away or ate crummy food or drank themselves silly? Do we still not hope and pray for their recovery? Do we not mourn them if they die?
Back to the question. The one stopped me in my tracks as I acted my way through my day in the fog of anticipatory grief.
"Did he smoke?"
Looking back, maybe she was just curious.
Or maybe she was seeking reassurance.
Reassurance that the monster that is cancer wouldn't happen to her, wouldn't kill someone she loved.
That I couldn't give her, regardless of my answer.
Posted Jul 15th 2007 8:00AM by Jacki Donaldson
Filed under: All Cancers, Environment, Diets, Exercise, Smoking, Sunday Seven
Who knows which pieces of cancer information floating around out there are actually true? I don't. Do cell phones cause cancer? Some say
yes, some say
no, I say
I'm confused! Luckily, I happened upon this
Discovery Health article that highlights a variety of myths and then offers the lowdown on each one. Here are seven of them:
Myth #1. There is currently a cure for cancer, but the medical industry won't tell the public about it because they make too much money treating cancer patients.Chalk this up to urban legend. And consider this: doctors, laboratory scientists, and their families and friends die of cancer at the same rate as everyone else in the United States. How about this: medical breakthroughs happen all the time and are quickly applied. Think about antibiotics and vaccines -- like the polio vaccine -- that have transformed health care. How about this? Not too long ago, less than one in 10 kids with leukemia survived 10 years. Now, the cure rate is nearly 80 percent. Seems like progress to me.
Continue reading Sunday Seven: Seven top cancer myths
Posted Jul 9th 2007 1:23PM by Patricia Mayville-Cox
Filed under: All Cancers, Smoking
It's very easy to say, "Why don't smokers just quit already?" As any who has tried to quit smoking knows, it's much easier to talk about quitting than to do it. As hard as it is to quit smoking, now it turns out that the process of becoming addicted is even easier than previously thought, as easy as just one cigarette.
A
report published in the
Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine shows that 10 percent of youth who become addicted to smoking are addicted within two days of first inhaling from a cigarette, and 25 percent are addicted within a month.
From Joseph R. DiFranza, MD, professor of family medicine & community health at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and leader of the UMMS research team, "In humans, nicotine-induced alterations in the brain can trigger addiction with the first cigarette. Nobody expects to get addicted from smoking one cigarette."
Posted Jul 8th 2007 8:00AM by Kristina Collins
Filed under: Lung Cancer, Prevention, Smoking, Sunday Seven
Quitting smoking is very hard to do. If you succeed the short and long term rewards include improved lung capacity, circulation, greater sense of smell and taste, reduced risk of coronary artery disease, stroke and lung cancer.
BlueCross BlueShield of Central New York and the New York State Smokers Quitline offer seven steps smokers can take in their quest to quit.
Visualize success. Studies of successful quitters show that one of the most important ways to succeed is to believe that they can quit smoking.
Make a plan. Create a daily plan to follow that includes:
- Times when you want to smoke most and things you can do instead of smoking when you have a craving.
- Names of friends and family you can call for support.
- A reward for yourself when you have achieved your goal of being smoke free.
Continue reading Sunday Seven: Seven ways to quit smoking
Posted Jul 5th 2007 7:50PM by Martha Edwards
Filed under: Lung Cancer, Opinion, Environment, Smoking
The city I live in recently banned smoking. I, along with many other people, breathed a huge sigh of relief when the ban was implemented (literally!) because it sometimes seemed downright impossible to have a social life in a city where smoking was allowed in almost all restaurants and bars. I recall an argument I had with someone who was upset because not being allowed to smoke in a public place was unconstitutional -- it was
his right to smoke wherever he pleased and if people don't like it, they shouldn't go out. Ever.
What about the right to live and to work in an environment where you're not putting yourself in grave danger? Everyone has the right to a safe work environment, including bar and restaurant staff. And make no mistake--second hand smoke
is toxic. According to
this report, bar and restaurant workers showed an alarming amount of carcinogenic material in their urine after being exposed to smoke for only minutes.
So I say, if you want to smoke, smoke. Just don't poison everyone else while you're at it. Your thoughts?
Posted Jul 4th 2007 2:48PM by Martha Edwards
Filed under: Lung Cancer
As I sit here at my makeshift desk, I'm watching my neighbour puff away on a cigarette, with the smell of smoke wafting into my open window. Over the years, a few people close to me -- my mom, my aunt, my boyfriend -- have quit smoking and kept away from cigarettes, but a few people in my life still smoke and show no signs of slowing down anytime soon, despite my nagging. Yeah, I know, they'll only quit when they're good and ready, but it's a bit depressing--what will it take for people to stop ruining their health? A cancer diagnosis? So many
non-smokers die of cancer ... how does that bode for smokers?
Anyway, here's some good news -- a while back, it was reported that
calls flooded in to ABC after a special on Peter Jennings' death aired, called Quit to Live. Now it's evident that
calls to 1-800-QUIT-NOW have not only doubled but tripled as a result of the special. So there are people out there resolving to quit and putting their health before the hassle of breaking an addiction. That's at least a bit promising, don't you think?
Posted Jun 25th 2007 9:17AM by Martha Edwards
Filed under: All Cancers, Environment, Diets, Cancer prevention foods, Smoking
Unless you've been touched by it, cancer can seem a world away. But it's not, and no matter your age, there are steps you should be taking to avoid getting cancer.
My Doc Hub has compiled
this list of thing you should be doing now to avoid getting cancer in the future. They are:
-Maintain a healthy weight
-Exercise regularly
-Don't smoke
-Eat healthy
-Cut your alcohol consumption
-Cover up in the sun
-Don't have unprotected sex
-Compile a medical and family history
-Talk to your doctor about risk factors and getting screened
If you're not doing these things right now, there's no time like the present.
Next Page >
Smoking is a well-known risk factor for bladder cancer and is responsible for 50% of the incidence in men and 25% of the incidence in women. Earlier studies have suggested that quitting smoking might reduce the risk of cancer incidence. Researchers have recently shown that quitting smoking is also effective not only to lower the original occurrence, but also to reduce the risk of relapse. 
