Emphysema : Silent Killer || Facts Of Emphysema

2008-01-17T18:52:00.000-08:00

Drowning in air? A paradox? Not really, with lungs filled with large pockets of air, its victims must gasp for life-giving oxygen. This is because waste air is not easily removed from the lungs allowing oxygen-rich air to replace it. More feared by cigarette smokers than lung cancer, Emphysema is yet little understood today. Its is one of the most destructive, yet least publicized lung diseases. This may be due in part to the fact that there have not been any dramatic treatment or prevention breakthroughs in man’s fight against emphysema.

Although cigarette smoking plays a key role in most cases of emphysema, Scientist have no idea what actually causes the majority of human cases. It is known, however, that smoking makes the condition much worse and speeds up the lung’s destruction.

Once the condition develops, it continues to worsen until there is permanent lung damage. By the time emphysema is detected, considerable damage has already occurred. For reasons not clearly understood, the walls of alveoli. The lung’s tiny air sacs, begin to disappear. Several sacs join together forming larger spaces, the alveoli walls lose their flexibility, and air is trapped.

As the damaged progresses, the lungs have greater difficulty in transferring oxygen to the blood and removing carbon dioxide from it. Once established, the disease cannot be reversed. Breathing becomes increasingly difficult and victim’s physical strength ebbs away. Death from emphysema has been described as slow drowning. Eventually exchange of air in the lungs becomes impossible and the sufferer suffocates.

There is also a rare inherited form of emphysema. In this form persons usually become ill at an early age in their 30s or 40s whereas classical emphysema victims are stricken at much older age, sometime in the late 60s or later. In the inherited form of disease, the effects are much more significant because it greatly restricts the victim’s life at a time when he would normally be very active. Because it is irreversible, the outlook for emphysema victims is not good.

Since it is sometimes possible to slow the spread of emphysema, it is important to detect it early, before much damage occurs. The breathing restriction imposed by the disease will likewise be minimized.

Until more about preventing emphysema is understood, everyone should be alert to the symptoms. Primarily excess sputum and shortness of breath. This is not normal and should be reported to your physician and above all, quit smoking or better yet, don’t start.

Quit Smoking

2006-11-05T10:58:00.000-08:00

SMOKING: Give it Up Now or Lessen Your Life

90% of lung cancer occurs in those who have smoked. Each package delivers the equivalent of one chest x-ray.

The Real Deal about Smoking and WHY You Can Quit Easily Too!

Smoking cigarettes is NOT a natural or pleasurable thing to do. The body rejects it, ie: hack, cough, spit and did someone say, horrible taste? Your body tells you this is really bad stuff! However, I must have said a thousand times, "I enjoy smoking" or "that cigarette will taste good right after dinner", but that was because they (the Tobacco Industry) made me believe smoking cigarettes was a natural and pleasurable thing to do.

It was your mind that convinced your body to start smoking in the first place so you could look cool/be accepted/whatever reason your mind came up with, and it is only your mind that can convince your body to stop.

Here is something that has got to shock you - nicotine is not what you are mainly addicted to in cigarettes! The tobacco companies and even the government and health care industry would have you believe this is true but there is another ingredient in the highly guarded, patent protected list (imagine that, it's the public's health at stake and this is a trade secret!) among the 1000s of chemicals in each cigarette that really is the one responsible for your addiction - and - the terrible struggle for most people to quit. In our program we reveal this ingredient (it will amaze you!) and more importantly, we teach you how to control and easily counteract your addiction to this substance - a simple and painless thing to do.

While every other quit smoking program is focused on helping you fight off false cravings for nicotine, hundreds of thousands of people who are sincere about quitting are sadly spending millions of dollars buying up expensive pills, patches, inhalers, supplements and gums in a losing battle to save their own lives. Therefore, both the smoking and the quit-smoking (pharmaceutical) industries (did someone say among the largest government lobbies in the U.S.?) are raking in billions and billions!

The main reason people fail to quit (and why it took almost 40 years of smoking for me to learn this) is that from the time we were little children we have been lied to and literally programmed by the powerful tobacco and pharmaceutical industries as well as the media to believe that we are heavily addicted and cannot quit.

People will offer up some incredible reasons and excuses to carry on smoking - such as smoking helps you lose weight or makes you look older.

It helps me unwind

Cigarettes don't make you relax. Nicotine is a stimulant. It actually speeds up your bodily functions - especially your heart rate.

Smoking is sexy

Kissing someone with a mouth like an ashtray isn't sexy. Having smoke blown in your face isn't sexy. Lung cancer isn't sexy. However buying someone special a gift with the money you didn't spend on smoking is definitely sexy.

Smoking keeps me skinny

Cigarettes don't keep your body weight down and they can even cause cellulite. Some people replace cigarettes with food when they give up and may therefore put on a few pounds. But if you've managed to give up smoking, you'll be able to tackle any weight gain, without any problems.

It's just something I do with my mates

It's not like you didn't hang out with your mates before you started smoking. There are loads of things you can do with them without killing yourself. You can play football, go and see a film, listen to some tunes, start a band.

It makes me look mature

Yes, smoking does ruin your skin and teeth and give you wrinkles before your time but apart from that there's nothing mature about smelling like an ashtray and inhaling vast amounts of grim chemicals.

I can smoke if I want to

Smoking isn't about being independent. It's addictive, and being an addict makes you more dependent than independent.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?