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what are the health risks of smoking?
Smoking creates an addiction to nicotine. Health risks include damage to the lungs, including lung (and other forms of) cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchitis and emphysema, infertility, high blood pressure , heart disease, peripheral vascular disease (furring of the arteries in the legs) and stroke.
Smoking is particularly harmful during pregnancy. Expectant mothers who smoke are more likely to have a miscarriage and to give birth prematurely. Their babies are smaller and are less likely to survive than babies of non-smokers. Children of smokers are more likely to suffer from asthma and bronchitis and to grow up to smoke themselves.
why is smoking so risky?
Cigarette smoke contains some 40 known cancer-causing chemicals. One of them is nicotine, a substance said to be as addictive as cocaine. Nicotine increases the amount of a brain chemical called dopamine which is responsible for smoking's 'feel-good factor' and stimulates the release of adrenalin, which in turn raises the blood pressure and heart rate. Carbon monoxide found in tobacco smoke combines with haemoglobin (the red blood cell pigment which carries oxygen to the body's cells), depriving your heart, brain and the rest of your body of oxygen. Long-term it contributes to hardening of the arteries which in turn raises the risk of heart attack. Tar in tobacco irritates the lungs and is thought to be a major cause of lung cancer.
Some complementary therapies appear to help some smokers when used as part of a properly designed smoking reduction plan. However will power is still needed. Nicotine replacement in the form of gums, patches and so on, can help too, while smoking reduction plans and classes are available in all parts of the UK as part of the government's NHS plan.
how complementary therapies may help you give up
Each therapy has been coded from 1 to 5 depending on the amount of scientific evidence there is for its effectiveness. The higher the number the stronger the evidence, so 5 = definitely, 4 = probably, 3 = possibly, 2 = opinion, and 1 = rumour. (There is more detail about these in the 'does it work?' section of 'before you start'.)
Having said this, the codes aren't meant to be cast in stone or to put you off trying a particular therapy or therapies if you feel they might be helpful to you.
Go to therapies for a full description of each individual treatment, plus information on how to find practitioners.
hypnotherapy
(code 3)
A hypnotherapist will help you to induce relaxation at will which may help ease cravings. Anecdotally hypnotherapy is said to help smoking cessation, although results of trials are conflicting.
relaxation and breathing
(code 3)
Relaxing can help ease tension and reduce stress, which is when many people feel the urge to light up. One study carried out in 1992 showed that using relaxation in combination with guided imagery helped former smokers maintain their resolve to quit and prevented relapse.
acupuncture
(code 2)
Acupuncture is of proven use in drug withdrawal programmes and is widely used in smoking cessation programmes, although the research evidence suggests it doesn't help. Ear acupuncture is traditionally used in detoxification programmes, however therapists may use a number of different techniques including electroacupuncture.
massage
(code 2)
Massage can help alleviate tension and encourage relaxation. In one small study, teaching people to massage their hand and ear helped reduce stress and curbed cigarette consumption.
» help and info
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(July 2002)
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