Smoking – the evil taken so casually
Smoking is one of the curses which the adult human population faces every day. It is a slow death and smokers feed their suicidal instincts daily by puffing at a piece of paper with the death herb rolled in it. Smoking is one of the most documented and absolutely proved causes of premature deaths in the world. Yet smokers never pay heed to all the health warnings they witness all around them.
What do cigarettes or cigars or hubble bubbles have in common that entice us to resort to these disease and death agents?
One of the most celebrated sages of human psychology, Sigmund Frued, reduced smoking to being stuck in the oral stage of development. He argues that infants who failed to learn that their oral needs, read sucking, to feed and to live were not properly developed, and who from infancy were always insecure that they could die from not getting their mouths on life inducing goods, breathed a sigh of relief when their fears proved wrong. Stretching his argument to smokers perceiving cigarettes as safe agents would not be an exercise in futility nor would it amount to turning the science of psychology on its head. There are as many reasons for smoking as are the number of smokers alive on planet earth. Smoking is indeed a futile activity and smokers resort to inhaling carbon monoxide when they feel happy, sad, when they want to amplify their happy emotions, when they want to inhibit their not so happy emotions, when they want to inhibit their hunger, to celebrate a meal, to enjoy the scenery, to ponder over mathematical problems and also when they want to scribble with words on the phenomenon of smoking. There is not one positive externality of smoking and yet one could never run out of excuses for not smoking.
An average cigarette of any make has around 4,000 toxic chemicals, with 460 carcinogenic chemicals and nicotine which is thought to be more addictive than heroine itself. The correlation of smoking with cardiac diseases, cancers of mouth, larynx, kidneys, throat and liver is no surprise for all exposed to cigarettes. The question that begs attention is why do we still smoke knowing that this is the subtlest form of poison? People biased towards smokers would allege that smokers are shortsighted people who can’t delay gratification. However, a research published by Kings College London last week, to gauge effects of smoking on human brain using a sample of 9,000, says that cigarettes are active ingredient of brain degeneration. The research says that cigarette smoke slowly erodes away rationality and memory and smokers don’t grasp this fact because their brain power to comprehend the fact diminishes every time they suck in on a smoke bomb.
With every puff a smoker inhales carbon monoxide in his lungs and every pre-medical student of class X would second me for saying that carbon monoxide is more reactive than oxygen and severely limits oxygen absorption by blood from lungs until the body rallies against the brain, gets on autopilot and tries to regain lost ground.
To gain lost ground, the human reflex mechanism which is again proven by science to be the spinal cord, not the brain, orders the heart to beat faster, increases the breathing rate and consumes glucose in the body to regain energy lost when carbon monoxide forms a compound with hemoglobin in the red blood cells instead of oxygen. The result is a faster heart beat and a decreasing blood sugar level. Interestingly, our brain whose evolution into industrial urban centres is only a couple of centuries old and falls back to pre-historic times for decoding bodily instincts, does not believe in an accelerated heartbeat and nausea due to reducing sugar levels to be healthy signs even after a couple of hours of cigarette smoke. Compound this with the addictive property of nicotine and you have a recipe for a population with a bad oral hygiene, plummeting health and scenes of children falling prey to asthmatic attacks in closed quarters after inhaling secondhand smoke. Bringing into the equation smoker’s cough would scare the writer out of his wits.
All brands available in the market are in fact the same chemically. The differences in prices are a genius of marketing with packs differentiating in colours and their respective brand ambassadors. Chain smokers would argue that they can tell the difference between the smokes of good vs bad tobacco but differing tastes are not due to the quality of tobacco used but the liquid in which the tobacco is soaked before concentrating it into paper carcasses. Orange juice, apricot stone and oak extracts are considered aristocratic.
The lites version of various brands is what interests me the most. The tobacco used in the lite version of a brand is the same as that of its rather regular version. Lite cigarettes are produced by infusing tobacco with carbon dioxide and then superheating it until the tobacco puffs like expanding foam. The expanded tobacco is then filled into paper tubes just like the regular version.
The writer did not come across one credible statistic regarding the number of cigarette smokers in Pakistan. On average, a person smoking a pack daily that costs PKR 90 and has been smoking for eight years has spent 250,000 rupees on nothing but harmful smoke. Multiply this with as many million people as you deem fit and imagine the multiplier effect that would have resulted if the money burnt to ashes was diverted to employment generation. Now add to it the amount drawn out of the public treasury for providing health care to smoking induced diseases.
Revenues generate by tobacco companies in Pakistan would be a good starting point to gauge the size of tobacco business and could lead one to identify many untapped niches which one could exploit to amass extra cash.
This article and its writer deserve to be burned at the stake for their immature and asinine views. Mr.Iftikhar, don't you think that in the modern world individuals should be free to choose whatever they do. You are a nazi and a fascist and it behooves me to say anything else to you.
I hate it when I have to see this level of stupidity being displayed so publicly on the pages of Pakistan Today. Why are writers like these allowed to share their narrow minded views. They are the real evil in society. Bloody bleeding hearts!
Not smoking only but new inductions like shisha or addiction of carbonated and energy drinks are highly spread in the society via media or celebrities which are highly decreasing positive brain energy as brain is controlled by such chemical fed recreations.All this is being promoted ,just to run such huge businesses but on the stake of health of youth and children.Author is giving latest updates of side effects of smoking which is not being swollen by already brain disintegrated guys so he should not be grumbled on them as he has already forecast such after effects of smoking which is seen in their comments quite clearly Nothing more to further add as it is practically proved by themselves.
Nazia, you should change your name to Nazi just for your immature and un-informed views. Should we also start speaking out against cars, for the people they run over….sugar…for causing diabetes. when will morons like you learn that limits are an individuals own preference. if i want to smoke myself to the grave, people like you and Mr.Iftikhar here need to mind their own bloody business.
miss piggy Some people always remember me with this Nazi term but not as you are thinking but in Arabic or Persian its meaning is honor or proud in humble sense.So I mean like that too other than what you are trying to pose me.surely we can speak on all matters as you are pointing but we need writeup like that and you will find me there too .here I am just appreciating the little efforts of mr Jehnagir that it is need of time to realize what we are puffing for.
You would be surprise to hear that My fahter is regular smoker for last 65 years ,he has no cardiac history, nor any high lipid profile.His over all health is excellent but you know all credit goes to my mother who never ever crossed this selfish limit drawn by him but keep him healthy and fit through all other means via food, taking his responsibility and then she become bedridden because of her extra effort.So for selfish people who only thinks of their own preferences, no one can dare other than me to ask them to leave this dirty habit as soon as possible.So if you live like smoke engine then I have no problem of saying is that wrong is always wrong no matter all will follow it.
For me it is like jihad to tame the monsters and I will carry on this mission for rest of my life.
Wow. All we need is a jihadi Nazi to totally send this nation down the drain. please keep your jihad and your views to yourself!
Not all but some really" special' ignored by social services of Pakistan is need of my free practical advices.Those are not Views which are kept by oneself but considered as Quotes. we must need a source to share our positive and bright views.I am not selfish like you who always encircles around selfish self addicting means.
please Jihadi Nazi…go and get some english lessons for yourself before foisting your moral uprightedness on us. no one needs your practical advice or your jihad
English language is mandatory of foisting my moral uprightness on you people ??
if my this broken English can create trouble for you then think what will be your response if I will come back after having master in English
You would surely not need my advice in good times but in bad times(God forbid) It will come and haunt you that some one somewhere try to guide you.Surely every body has right to enjoy his/her experience as per his/her life style even then smoking cant be placed in any kind reasonable choice for individuals and people living in their surroundings.Spending on smoking or saying to enjoy it is just like that you ignore need of your real life partner and going towards illegal relationships on the name of pleasures or for securing one's individuality.
Again I say wrong is always wrong no matter all will adopt it.
good effort by young Writer, hope and wish good and positive articles in future . Brgds/Asad
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