Health and Men

If You Must Smoke, Please Don’t Exhale.

by Scott on September 2nd, 2007

If you must smoke, please don’t exhale. This was a sign on the wood-shop wall of my elementary school. I always found it kind of strange cause back then I didn’t understand it. These days I find it more amusing and even wish it was a valid request. I used to live in upstate N.Y. and when they banned smoking in public areas I was kinda bummed cause back then I smoked. I understood banning smoking in restaurants but bars I didn’t agree with. A bar is a place where most people fill themselves with mass quantities of alcohol and take the chance of going home with someone they don’t really know and maybe have unprotected sex, but it’s no place for smoking!

These days I enjoy smoke free places, especially restaurants because I quit smoking. When I did smoke I was an outside smoker because I hated my house smelling like smoke and my son did not get sick as much when I stopped smoking inside. So for the health of my family I started smoking outside. It made for some cold winter days but thats what smokers do. They put themselves through a bit of misery in order to feed their bodies that nicotine.

I never realized how much it was displeasing to have to smell cigarette smoke until I quit. These days I feel better when I get up in the morning, I get winded a lot lesswhen physically exerted and I smell a lot better then I did when I smoked. What I’m trying to get at is this:

If your a smoker and your not ready to quit atleast have the courtesy to smoke outside. You may think non-smokers are being selfish and not considering You needs, but lets be real about this. Its not a need! You may think you need it, but you were born without it, it’s not an essential physical need so, no. You don’t need it. But non-smokers need clean air in order to live a happy life and as a former smoker I know that we used to stand around smoking outside, griping about how non-smokers should quite wining and deal with it…but thats was just our way of justifying an unhealthy HABIT.

If you think you are ready to quit and know your going to need help, cause most of us do or did then click one of the link below to learn more about quitting the habit/ addiction.

• How to Butt Out
• Quitting Tobacco Use
• Nicotine Helpline
• The Great American Smokeout
• The Smoker’s Body
• Online Help From QuitNet
• WhyQuit.com
• Advice From the CDC
• Tobacco News and Information
• The Foundation for a Smokefree America
• QuitAssist
• Addiction & Recovery Groups on MSN
• QuitTobacco.com
• The American Cancer Society’s Guide to Quitting Smoking
• TrytoStop.org

Links provided by MSN.com

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POSTED IN: Prevention