That's Fit

Highlighting just how hard of a habit smoking is to quit, New York state is running a new ad campaign that features a lifelong smoker. Skip Legault, 48, shares his smoking-related health problems -- including two heart attacks before age 30 -- in ads that will reach viewers through TV, Internet, and newspapers.

The fact that Mr. Legault is still smoking has brought the ads some criticism, but state health officials say that his smoking status shouldn't matter. The whole point is to show people the damage that smoking can do, and how hard it is to stop once you've started.

You can view the ad here. What do you think about it?

It's not often that we hear of a former smoker that turns tide and becomes a outspoken critic of smoking, but that is just what Maureen Hamilton did before her death last week.

Right up until the end, Hamilton, who passed away from emphysema complications, wanted the world to see what the smoking of cigarettes can do to a human body. Did she want to be remembered with a glamorous photo from her past?

No -- Hamilton wanted photos of her ravaged body to be on display after she died to give those who smoke a perfect picture of what all that smoking can result in. It's not a pretty picture -- but it is the truth. What are you doing to quit?

What are the best ways to discourage smoking? That question sometimes invites excited conversation when I ask it, but a new study from international tobacco control researchers has an answer.

The most effective: graphic warning labels on packages, bans on cigarette advertising and increasing cigarette prices are some of the most effective ways to curb smoking.

An ineffective approach: mandating tar and nicotine levels in cigarettes, which is a weak approach to begin with since it's mostly passive.

Pfizer's smoking cessation drug Chantix may cause depression and suicidal thoughts, according to the FDA.

Since it seems almost any new prescription drug causes some bizarre array of side effects, it seems appropriate that Chantix is one of them. Doctors have reported severe mood swings, suicidal thoughts and depression from patients taking he drug.

What do do? Quit some other way, that's what. Although the FDA told the media that patients shouldn't stop taking Chantix (not just yet, anyway), doctors need to monitor those patients very closely. Yeah, I am sure that will happen fast. Here's an idea: stop taking Chantix. Use another smoking cessation aid.

Those who read That's Fit regularly will probably know that I am a huge opponent of smoking. It's killed family member, friends and the places where smoking is allowed don't get my business (or my breathing, heh). It's just plain nasty to me, although many will disagree with that statement. No problem I say -- it's our differences that make us human.

But for those that have been addicted to nicotine (read: smoking), but who have had issue after issue giving up the habit, there are those who have made successful attempts that stuck. Reading those stories can sometimes shift a smoker to try and give up smoking. If some method works, so be it. It doesn't matter as long as it works, rights?

It's been said that about 66 percent of smokers want to quit, but only about five percent made it to the banishment stage in 2006. Why all the trouble? And, why do 20 million American women continue to puff away ever day when it's more dangerous to them than to their male counterparts? If you're a female smoker, you can quit -- and for proof, read this. Yes, you can do it.

What if somebody said you could get your nicotine fix, just as fast and just as effectively as smoking, but without the smoking? Next Safety Inc., a new company based in North Carolina, says it can do just that with a new device it's hoping will be approved for use soon. It's a small machine that allows users to inhale nicotine directly, which provides for faster and more direct brain absorption than nicotine gums and patches do.

As of now the device is still in the testing stages and waiting for FDA approval, but it looks like it might be the next big thing. Will you be on board if it comes to a pharmacy near you?


Via Engadget

If you're a smoker who's looking to quit, and the words "smokeless tobacco" sound appealing, please think again. Although in theory getting rid of the smoke should solve the problem, the truth is smokeless tobacco is just as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than cigarettes when it comes to cancer-causing chemicals. The soot and smoke isn't the only thing you're avoiding when you avoid smoking.

The good news? Although smokeless tobacco isn't the way to go, nicotine replacement therapies (the patch, the gum, etc) is a fairly safe choice. It's a step down, not just trading one evil for another equal evil.

Yeah, that's right, some good news on the smoking front. The number of smokers in Washington has been dropping steadily since 1999 and has reached an all-time low (so far, anyway) of 17%.

So that's the good news. The bad news is that of those 17% remaining smokers most are lower-income less-educated adults, and although they are interested in quitting they seem to be having a harder time doing it than the rest of the population.

But Washington seems to be on the right track, currently sitting with the 5th lowest smoking rate in the country. There's talk of routing funds towards giving the low-income population some help to quit smoking, in addition to their already successful approaches of an indoor smoking ban and increased tobacco taxes.

The quest for the "fountain of youth" of age treatments to keep ourselves looking our youngest is not something new, but it's not going away anytime soon either. And although cosmetic surgery procedures are getting more and more advanced all the time, going under the knife isn't an option for many people for obvious reasons. So here's a list of some of the latest and greatest in non-surgical age-erasing treatments, ranging in price from free (quit smoking!) to upwards of $2500 (ArteFill injections).

• Artefill is a wrinkle filler injection for small lines.
• N.V. Perricone, M.D. Cosmeceuticals' Advanced Eye Area Therapy is a topical treatment that will be available this fall at Sephora, Nordstrom, and Neiman Marcus.
• Affirm laser treatments.

I don't smoke, but if I did and somebody gave me this ashtray I don't know if I would laugh or cry. I think at this point even the die-hard smokers who have no intention of quitting know it's an unhealthy habit, but this might be taking things a little far even for someone like that. It's an ashtray that not only looks like a real pair of lungs (I've seen them before) but it screams and coughs when you put a cigarette in it. How long will somebody actually use this thing before it gets the batteries taken out or gets kicked across the room?


Via Book of Joe

Ronald Martinez has become a celebrity in New York City, but not for reasons he would have wished for. Ronald Martinez was a smoker, and he had to have his larynx removed due to throat cancer. His story, told in his own words through the artificial voice box he now needs to communicate, has been enough to frighten thousands of New Yorkers into quitting smoking. The campaign, entitled "Nothing Will Ever Be the Same," has made quite the impact with 92% of New York citizens reporting they've seen at least one of the anti-smoking ads.

As successful as it's been, the Ronald Martinez anti-smoking campaign may or may not continue in the future, as the direction of New York's anti-smoking efforts are up for review and they are "looking at all options." What do you think -- time to move on to something new and fresh or stick with something that has worked in the past?

The UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recently gave a thumbs-up to Champix (varenicline), a twice-daily drug used to help smokers kick the habit. During a 12-week trial almost half of the smokers tested were able to quit with the help of Champix. The prescription drug minimizes cravings and reduces withdrawal symptoms.

In Europe alone, over 1.2 million people die each year from smoking-related illness. The World Health Organization predicts smoking/health costs will skyrocket to approximately $500 billion by 2010. My guess is most smokers are fully aware of the health risks their habit creates and the economic drain it places on society, but an addiction is and addiction is an addition. There's no two ways about it -- smoking is a hard habit to break.

Champix has been on the market for a while, but the new approval comes at an appropriate time -- just one month before a UK-wide ban on smoking in public places goes into effect.

If you think you have allergies now due to the rapid changes in environment that trend towards more warm seasons, the possibility of global warming makes those afflictions worse may be of concern to you.

What about those who aren't heat-friendly? Reports out of the UK that suggest more warm weather and less cold weather are nothing to sneeze at (no pun intended).

The heatwave in France that killed thousands three years ago would not be a welcome commonplace scenario. But, what if it was?

Okay, if you've got a running list, get it out and add this to your reasons to quit smoking: smoking has been linked to an increased risk for catching and developing tuberculosis.

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, compiled data from 24 previous studies on the subject and came up with some scary numbers. Smokers are 73% more likely to become infected with TB when exposed, and then more than twice as likely to develop the active form of the disease.

TB is no laughing matter (not to say that lung cancer or emphysema are either), but now that smoking has been pinpointed as a risk factor education and policies can be modified to hopefully help with prevention.

Many smokers who have tried to quit and who have succeeded probably has used all available methods to try and ditch the habit. From nicotine gum to patches to cold turkey to drugs, some smokers go through the entire gamut trying to find a method that works best for them.

Even though you may fail at stopping smoking the first few times, experts say that using pills to try and kick the habit may take time and several attempts before success comes.

Now, I don't know if this is the age-old argument from a marketing standpoint (rinse and repeat method from hair shampoo) gussied up to sell more drugs, but when the question of quitting smoking is on the table, any method needs to be tried for many, as it can take several weeks for many people to fully wean themselves off tobacco (according to researchers.)