Workplace Smoking: How Worse Is It

The cost of cigarette smoking to business is high. Over 77 million work days are lost each year due to the effects of smoking. Business now spends over 50 billion dollars a year on medical care, accidents, lost productivity, and absenteeism.

Absenteeism rates average one-third higher for smokers because smoking severely reduces the effectiveness of the smoker’s natural immune system. Few employers realize that smoking employees can cost them up to $8,000 more per year than nonsmokers.

Two-thirds of the smoke from a burning cigarette goes into the environment. This smoke has twice the nicotine, five times the carbon monoxide, and fifty times the ammonia as the smoke that is directly inhaled. When smokers smoke, the people around them smoke, too. Annually, between 500 to 5,000 nonsmokers will die from lung cancer as a result of other people’s smoke.

If you’re concerned about the problem and would like to begin a campaign in your company to eliminate smoking, perhaps these suggestions will help:

• Establish support for a no-smoking policy. Involve members of top management.

• Provide educational literature to employees.

• Form a task force composed of diverse areas and management. Include at least one individual with research skills.

• Conduct a survey to inform employees that the topic is being examined. You’ll gather valuable data about your employee population.

• Establish a no-smoking policy. Begin educating and informing employees through a well-formed publicity campaign. Put up no-smoking signs, and offer information sessions.

• Offer a “stop smoking” program. You may decide to give bonuses or incentives. Perhaps give small monetary bonuses to nonsmokers, and offer smokers the same rewards if they give up smoking for six months.

• Phase in restrictions gradually. Employees react more positively to changes when given time to adjust.

• Deal with militant smokers. Smoking is a privilege not a right that is subject to other company rules. (Employees aren’t allowed to listen to radios full blast, for instance.)

• Be flexible. You may decide to make adjustments in the program.

Read More: http://socyberty.com/work/smoking-in-the-workplace/

Do Slow-Motion People Have Advantages?

Most often in the slow-motion mode, Type “B” personalities are definitely unhooked.

They read slowly, eat slowly, speak slowly – and generally drive fast-forward people crazy! Slow-motion people are easy-going and rarely harried. They take time. They’re contemplative, steady-working, and not easily irritated.

I’m not saying that one type of personality is better than the other. The stuck, fast-forward people, without management, can drive themselves into an early grave. On the other hand, the stuck slow-motion people, without a little motivation, can bore themselves to death. Knowing which personality describes you is not as important as knowing your own tendencies and learning how to manage them.

People who meet me for the first time rarely think I’m a fast-forward person, but a closer evaluation of my behavior clearly shows that I am. After training, however, I’ve learned to manage myself relatively well.

This training has been well worth my time because my research shows that fast-forward people make up only 20 percent of the population, yet they account for 80 percent of the people who have heart disease.

Coronary heart disease is common in fast-forward people in their thirties or forties, while slow-motion people rarely experience heart trouble before age seventy. The life span of the average fast-forward person individual is fourteen years shorter than her or his slow-motion counterpart — fifty-nine years compare to seventy-three.

Furthermore, a lot can be experienced and accomplished during those additional fourteen years. More than one survey has shown that a majority of the very top executives who are highly efficient and productive have more slow-motion characteristics than fast-forward. These people work out of a sense of purpose rather than compulsion. They enjoy their play time and set aside time for their loved ones. Most important, they know their worth apart from their work. They know they are worthy individuals because of who they are.

Fight or Flight Reaction: Tension Buildup

Stress’ common denominator is change. As long as we live, we will experience thousands of changes every day.

During any situation involving change, the body can create an enormous amount of pent up energy. As a consequence, a lot of wear and tear (stress) is expressed within. This causes an unnecessary drain on energy reserves.

Other, more obvious, circumstances cause us to react immediately and intensely, producing the fight or flight reaction. This response puts an extremely heavy demand on the body. Perceiving a serious threat, the body is put on red alert in order to make itself respond effectively. The stress producing this fight or flight syndrome is obvious, as the body reacts to a demand placed upon it..

In order to demonstrate how tension can build slowly and how this accumulation can affect the intensity of the fight or flight reaction, I’d like you to visualize a situation with me.

You are just returning from a pleasant and relaxing vacation. Having settled into your seat on the plane, you lean back to enjoy the memories of the recent days.

Suddenly, the captain’s voice over the intercom interrupts your dreamy thoughts: “We will be passing through the outer edges of a storm. There are reports of mild turbulence. To be on the safe side, please fasten your seat belts.”

The “Fasten Seat Belt” sign blinks on above your head, and a few minutes pass with the airplane bouncing you slightly.

Then you hear the intercom click again.

“The turbulence appears to be a little stronger than we originally anticipated,” says the captain, “so I’ll ask that you remain in your seats, keeping seat belts fastened, until further advised.”

During the next few silent moments, the ride becomes quite choppy. Again, the intercom interrupts.

“This is your captain speaking. Place your trays and seats in a forward position. We are approaching the most turbulent area — Oh! Oh my God!”

The plane lurches forward, you’re thrown against the restraints of the seat belt, and people around you scream out. Suddenly, the entire cabin is quiet.

In a few minutes that seem like hours, the captain returns to the intercom. “Ladies and gentlemen, we are now past the worst of the turbulence. And let me apologize for that sudden outburst — I spilled a cup of hot coffee on my lap.”

Read More: http://socyberty.com/psychology/the-fight-or-flight-reaction/

How to Develop A Disciplined Lifestyle

Four key words that relate to new disciplined lifestyle are compulsive, consistent, focus, and discipline.

• The first, however, is meant to remind that is important not to be compulsive about your progress.

• Second, give attention to the consistency of your progress rather than the discrepancy between where you are and where you’d like to be.

• Third, develop the ability to put on blinders and focus on what you want to improve.

• Finally, start to learn the discipline it takes to stick with it.

Remember, a program of improvement is a slow process that requires patience. It is a brick-by-brick building process that has within the plans a stronger foundation and structure for a healthier, happier, and more productive life. Guard against your own natural impatience. Most of us have a tendency to be too hard on ourselves.

Like any pianist, singer, writer, typist, teacher, actor, or golfer, we get better at anything we want to do by patiently practicing correctly. We need to discipline ourselves to practice consistently and patiently until we see the results we desire.

Let me summarize with the 3 D’s:

• Desire – your goal or objective.

• Discipline – consistently and patiently thinking, planning, and working toward your desire.

• Delight – the feeling, experience, and excitement of achieving your desire.

Read More: http://socyberty.com/lifestyle-choices/the-disciplined-lifestyle/

Is It Safe to Eat Potato Chips?

Our need to fill emotional rather than nutritional hungers often leads us to reach for over-processed and unbalanced foods. Consider the potato chip. In its raw form, the potato is exceptionally high in nutrients. But it undergoes a change between the earth and the airtight bag. The outer edge of the potato (just under the peel), with its high concentration of nutrients, is peeled away. The remaining potato is cut into thin pieces, soaked in preservatives, and cooked in oils that contain no nutritive value.

A handful of these treats contain about one hundred calories; and they are saturated with fats and chemicals our bodies cannot metabolize. After cooking, the chips are heavily salted. Salt is non-food that has a corrosive effect on the body’s vitamin supplies.

Salt forces potassium out of the body. This changes the delicate acid-base balance of our nerve cells and tissues. Over time, this imbalance can influence the electrical impulses of our nervous system, which, in turn, affects the heart, blood pressure, and circulatory system, as well as other systems of the body.

All these from potato chips. Why does our nation consume millions of pounds of them every year, if we know all about their lack of nutritive value? Because they fill an emotional need. They taste good, and they’re accessible.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/nutrition/whats-wrong-with-potato-chips/

Do Fast-Forward People Promote Death?

For those of you with persistent fast-forward personalities, let me save you a little time by giving you these tips:

• Make sure your job comes first and your personal and family life second.

• Go to work evenings, weekends, and holidays so you won’t be interrupted.

• When not at work, spend time at home thinking about or doing work to catch up or get ahead.

• Drive fast because you can’t waste time getting where you need to be.

• Consistently plan meetings for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

• Avoid time wasters like hunting, fishing, golf, gardening, and regular exercise.

• Be involved in as many organizations, committees, meetings, and banquets as possible.

• Take vacations only when absolutely necessary

• When out of town for work, schedule an early morning appointment for your first day back at your office to help keep you on track.

• Do not delegate responsibility; you can do it better and faster yourself.

One thing is for sure: You’ll never get too busy to attend your own funeral, whether or not it was in your schedule.

Read More: http://socyberty.com/advice/tips-to-an-early-grave/

The Workaholic Disease: Stuck in Fast-Forward

The way a fast-forward person lives adds to the stress and strain he or she is already experiencing.

Being out of balance is not in itself destructive; but to the extent an individual cannot let go and return to a healthy balance, she or he is no longer in control.

People with fast-forward personalities eat, walk, and talk fast. They are restless and impatient, have trouble relaxing, and thrive on deadlines. Typically they are compulsive, competitive, and power-seeking. They are clock-watchers and time-binders. Fast-forward types will try to cram eight hours of work into two and then become agitated when the work isn’t completed – especially if someone else was expected to do it.

They feel pressure even when there’s no need to. They burn a great deal of energy needlessly and have trouble unhooking. They are the high-rollers – big spenders – when it comes to energy use.

About 5 a.m. in an airport rest room, I was at the sink washing my hands. At first I thought I was alone in the room, but I kept hearing a faint mumbling. Turning to look, I saw a pair of legs at the end of a long row of stalls. Listening more closely, I quickly realized that the gentleman in the stall was dictating a letter to his secretary!

Some people might call that an efficient use of time. I say it demonstrates a number of points about fast-forward personalities: the need to do more than one thing at a time, a tendency to have trouble letting go, and an inclination to be stuck in the fast-forward mode.

Read More: http://socyberty.com/advice/are-you-stuck-in-fast-forward/

Mental Break - Regenerate Healthfully

Our society has become irreversibly noisy. We are rarely blessed with – or allow ourselves the luxury of – relative silence. When was the last time you relaxed by a fire to only the sound of a soft, comforting voice or gentle music?

By incorporating silence and relaxation into your day, you can control your environment and its effect on your life. Learn to spend time alone in restful, natural locations – the park, the mountains, or a wooded area. Create a relaxing environment at home. Turn off the TV. Pull the shades. You deserve a break.

Relaxation helps give clarity of mind. It enhances our thinking, planning, creativity, and our ability to make decisions. People who regularly practice relaxation talk of sleeping better and of having more energy and better overall health. They say they’ve actually watched their performance at work and their sense of well-being improve. They do more in less time and with fewer mistakes.

Taking time to relax gives us a mental break and turns off the harmful bodily effects of stress. It normalizes and tunes our bodies’ natural homeostatic or balancing mechanisms. It is vital to the body’s process of adapting and regenerating healthfully.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/mental-health/giving-your-mind-a-break/

Health as Dominoes - Improve Mind and Body

Just as our homes are in need of care and attention to keep them functioning and to bring out their fullest potential, we also need care and attention to keep functioning and to realize our fullest potential.

When you improve your mind, your body, or your environment, you create a cause-and-effect chain reaction that changes your life; when one of the major divisions in your life changes, so do the other two. It’s like a circle made up of dominoes. Tip one over – start at any section of the circle – and the others follow. Or touch one part of a hanging mobile; the whole mobile begins to move.

Begin one good habit and observe how it affects the other areas of your life. Begin exercising regularly, for example, and see how you will begin to manage your fast forward attitudes and the stress that’s been plaguing you.

That’s the good thing about the three major areas (mind, body, and environment) – they are interdependent.

Perhaps this renewal of attitude and body will help reduce your craving for cigarettes, which will reduce your blood pressure, positively affect your diet and your weight, and contribute, to high energy. Overall, your attitude and your health will be much better. Any positive changes you make will probably contribute to your potential for play, work, worship, and love.

Enter the circle at any point – mind, body, or environment – and your efforts will have an immediate affect on the other areas of your life. Better yet, enter in and make improvements in each of the three areas, and you are sure to send the energy-draining and health-destroying dominoes tumbling. Each time you complete one of the action steps, you are investing in your God-given potential – your bright and exciting future.

Read More: http://authspot.com/thoughts/the-domino-effect/

The Picky Eater - Tips to Handle Them

If you’re a worried parent of a picky eater, try these tips.
• Introduce food in calm, reassuring manner.

• Never force a feeding.

• Be content if your picky eater just goes for a taste on the first try. Maybe he’d be adventurous enough to chew and swallow the same food the next time.

• Let your child get used to a certain food a little at a time. He’ll soon learn to like it.

• Never make an issue out of finishing or not finishing every food you serve. Kids may develop an unhealthy view of food as they grow up.

• Maximize every bite. For example, substitute white bread with whole wheat, junk food with fresh fruits. Skip ice cream, cake, and other sweets especially near mealtime.

• Serve food in an attractive way and closest to its natural state. Kids are attracted to crispness and color.

• Serve food in bite sizes to avoid the risk of choking.

Remember, youngsters thrive on routine and are often resistant to change. They also take their cue from you. Thus if you refuse to eat your veggies, don’t expect your children to eat theirs. Instead, be a good example in eating healthful foods. Eat as often as possible with them, too, and they will acquire a taste for healthy food.

Family Meals
Make each mealtime a pleasant experience for your child by following these tips:

• Involve your child in meal preparation. It helps increase his or her interest in new or unfamiliar food.

• Include at least one of your child’s preferred foods.

• Offer a variety of colors and textures.

• Serve in child-size proportions.

• Tolerate your child’s table manners. Let a child be a child.

• Select chairs, tables and dishes that are suitable in structure and size for your child.

• Serve meals and snacks just before your child becomes hungry, irritable and tired.

• Make mealtime a family time so you can teach nutrition by example.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/children/dealing-with-a-picky-eater/

Cancer FAQ: Doc, How Long Do I Have?

For many people, the question “How long do I have?” is the first thing that comes to mind when there’s a diagnosis of cancer. Unfortunately, there’s no clear-cut answer.

What’s known is that every year about one million people are told they have some form of cancer, and treatments are capable of curing more than half of them.

Some cancers are easier to treat than others. And while many people experience a complete recovery, others may live for a time with their cancer well controlled.

One way your doctor may try to address this question is to look at the 1-, 5- and 10-year survival statistics for people who have the same type, stage and grade of cancer you do.

But keep in mind that these are averages. Contributing to the averages are a small number of people who do far better (and some who do worse) for reasons that aren’t understood.

The initial moments after receiving a cancer diagnosis are often clouded. Studies show that when people in this situation are asked what they discussed with their doctors, they remember less than five percent of what was said.

What can you do?

If possible, bring with you to your appointments someone who’s reliable and can help you unscramble the information. Have that person take notes, or ask your doctor if you can tape-record your conversations for review later. In addition, request a copy of your diagnostic report, which is part of your medical record.

A cancer diagnosis raises serious considerations. It’s reasonable to seek a second opinion, especially if there’s a major cancer center or university that has particular expertise with your type of cancer.

In discussing your treatment options, don’t hesitate to ask questions. Ask about risks and benefits associated with treatment, as well as side effects. And talk about what the quality of your daily life may be like during and after treatment.

Ultimately, how you’ll do is unique to you, because cancer is an individual experience. Much depends on how you respond to treatment for your particular cancer.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/conditions-and-diseases/so-doctor-how-long-do-i-have/

What is Acne: Know the Skin Facts

Acne is not caused by dirt clogging the pores or by eating oily food. Even if you wash your face, your super clean face can still be prone to pimples.

Adults can get acne lesions for a number of reasons, such as using acne-causing or comedogenic cosmetics and products, an increase in oil production mediated by hormonal stimulation (from the menstrual period, emotions or stress), and the use of certain drugs.

The causes of acne are multi-factorial, or a combination of many factors. The sex hormones, especially during the teen years, cause an increase in sebum production by the sebaceous glands. You can also inherit oily skin and the tendency to have severe acne. There may be a hereditary tendency for the cells lining the passageway of the sebaceous glands to become sticky and to clump together. There are bacteria that are naturally found in pilosebaceous unity. Called the Propionibacterium acnes, these bacteria feed on the sebum. These bacteria break down the sebum into fatty acids that can cause irritation and inflammation of the skin.

Depending on severity, the lesions of acne can be non-inflamed, or inflamed. The comedones, which are non-inflamed lesions, are plugs formed by sebum, sticky skin cells and P. acnes bacteria. A blackhead (open comedone) has an opening to the skin surface. It is “black” because of pigment deposition, and not because of dirt.

A whitehead is also a plug but it differs from the blackhead because the opening to the skin surface is closed, so that the plug does not protrude out of it.

Inflamed lesions are small or large red pimples, pustules (filled with pus), cysts, and nodules. Squeezing non-inflamed whiteheads and blackheads can cause the plug to rupture into the skin, and can result in an inflammatory reaction. Inflamed lesions can cause scarring.

You will note that nowhere in this article have discussed that acne is caused by dirt clogging the pores. This concept, which has long been perpetuated in write-ups and ads, is simply a myth. Even if you wash and wash and wash your face, your super clean face can still be prone to pimples.

There are no specific studies that prove the relationship between food and acne. The secretion of the sebaceous glands is under the influence of the nervous system, which in turn is dictated by the hormones. Eating oily foods will not make the sebaceous glands produce more oil or sebum. Some people have flares of acne when eating specific foods such as chocolates, nuts or seafoods, or even drinking soft drinks. If you associate certain foods with your acne, it is best to avoid them.

To help you clear acne, you have to be on a regimen tuned in to the kind of lesions that you have. Treatment will depend on whether your acne is non-inflammatory or inflammatory. Bear in mind that acne is not a kind of skin disease that is cured in one topical application or one intake of an oral medication. Usually, it takes three to four months before control is obtained, and often there must be some kind of maintenance program. Also, with many topical medications, there is some worsening in the first two or three weeks as the medicines at this stage would be a mistake because this “worsening” is an expected part of the treatment.

Oral antibiotics are given, but acne is not an infection coming from bacteria in the environment. The P. acnes bacteria are already in the skin and act by breaking down the sebum to cause irritating fatty acids. Other than controlling P. acnes population, antibiotics can also decrease the sebum production. It is not uncommon to be prescribed antibiotics for several months when the lesions are very severe. When you stop your prescribed treatment, the lesion will recur.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/beauty/acne-myth-and-facts/

Skin Treatment: How to Treat Pimples

What should you do to stop pimples from ruining your face?

• Follow religiously the treatment prescribed by your dermatologist.

• Stop picking on your whiteheads or blackheads so that you don’t push the plug into the skin, causing inflammatory lesions that may heal with post-inflammatory darkening or worse, scarring.

• Gently wash your face with soap and water, no more than three times a day. Over-scrubbing or over-washing the face can be irritating and can possibly have the same effect as picking on the lesions.

• Eat a balanced diet and drink enough water daily to keep your skin healthy.

• Exposure to sunlight is good and can improve acne. However, don’t stay out in the sun too much that you end up sweating profusely, as the sweat can macerate the skin to be soft and soggy, and thus cause the pores to be clogged. Then, the sebum and skin cells are further trapped.

• Get enough rest and sleep. If you are dead tired, it can lower your general resistance and cause an outbreak of lesions.

• Avoid stressful situations.

• Use non-comedogenic cosmetics and products.

• Pimples may erupt when the monthly period is due. Be prepared to apply your topical medicines more fastidiously at this time.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/beauty/stop-pimples/

Progressive Relaxation: Learning to Relax

Work here! Work there! A lot of people, especially workaholic, forgot the time to relax. Relaxation is needed by everyone. It’s not for enjoyment only but refreshment that will keep your brain and body in shape. It is also best fit for dads who are working and even moms.

Here are techniques for relaxation, especially if you once used sugar as a sedative or food in general as a tranquilizer.

Progressive Relaxation

Lie on your back in a comfortable place: bed, sofa, or floor. Close your eyes. Inhale deeply. Release the air slowly. Repeat this cycle three more times. Now tense your leg muscles. Hold. Relax. Tense hip and abdomen muscles. Hold. Relax. Continue upward through every part of your body until you have worked upward to relax all the muscles of your face and scalp. 

This would be an excellent time to let your subconscious mind surface if you’ve been looking for a creative solution to a problem at work. Or you might simply want to drift off to sleep. Even if you only have time for a brief nap, you will awaken refreshed because you relaxed so completely.

Set Worry Limits

If you are a “worrier,” you may find yourself worrying throughout your day about maintaining your weight loss, problems at work, personal problems and staying on your recovery footpaths’. If this happens, deal with it somewhat like saying positive self-talk statements. Give yourself a ten-minute period once or twice a day when you can sit down and do a good job of worrying. When worries intrude during the day, jot them down and save them for your worry session, telling yourself, like Scarlett O’Hara, “I’ll think about that tomorrow.”

Business often develops a “worst case scenario” and a “best case scenario” when considering a new venture. Try imagining the worst that could happen, then the best that could happen. Reality will probably be somewhere in between. Then when it’s time to worry, try to use the time creatively. Don’t just go over and over the “what if. . .” worries but take the offensive and try to think of ways to handle the situation if the worst does happen. Writing a Plan B in your journal will free your mind of that worry.

Do Something Else

Psychologists call this “Competing Behavior,” but it’s really what our mothers did when they told us to “Go, do something else.” Sometimes it is important to take journals especially those who are plagued with repeating worries. Writing down journals can contribute insight and also provides a competing behavior – the act of writing gives them something else to do. Going out for a walk or a session of aerobic exercises can do the same thing if one’s schedule allows.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/mental-health/learn-to-relax/

How to Remember What You Usually Forget

An aid, but if symptoms persist consult your doctor.

• Names – When you meet someone, repeat that person’s name aloud as soon as you can. Say, “Nice to meet you, Jack.” Then look closely at him and repeat his name silently to yourself 10 times.

• Numbers – Break long numbers down into meaningful chunks. For instance, a checking account number 1048630 is easier to remember if you think of it as 10:48 (time for mid-morning snack) and 6:30 (dinner time).

• Shopping Lists – Visualize your house with a giant version of each item in various rooms; a huge egg in the kitchen, a big loaf of bread in the bedroom, etc. When shopping, mentally scan your house to recall your list.

• Household Chores and Errands – Don’t try to remember that you must mail a letter. Instead, place the letter near the door so you will see it as you leave.

• Mnemonics and Acronyms – Make up a verse or phrase to remember facts. For example, “On March 15, 1521, the Philippines was (re)discovered by Magellan.” A well known acronym is ROY G. BIV. They stand for the colors of the rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet).

• Visualize – A mental image is a picture you make up that includes the information you want to remember. Making up images is a very good way to learn and to recall. For instance, if you park your car in spot 4B, think of 4 bananas.

• Write it Down – In a survey of memory experts, their top technique for not forgetting was the simplest – make notes. Writing forces you to focus your attention and also provides a backup in case your memory fails. Some people recall the appearance of the note, and then they remember the items on it.

How to Manage Everyday Anxiety

Almost everyday, everyone feels worry.

• Take Action

 - Determine what’s making you anxious and address it.

• Let it Go

 - Don’t dwell on past concerns.

 - Change what you can and let the rest take its course.

• Break the Cycle

 - When you feel anxious, take a brisk walk or delve into a hobby to refocus

• Take Care of Yourself

 - Get enough rest, eat a balanced diet, exercise and take time to relax.

 - Avoid caffeine and nicotine, which can worsen anxiety.

 - Don’t turn to alcohol or not prescribed drugs for relief.

• Talk to Someone

 - Share your problems with a friend or counselor who can help you gain perspective.

Read More: http://socyberty.com/advice/how-to-manage-everyday-anxiety/

Smoking Cigarettes: Quit to Decrease Suffering

There is no safe cigarette. Even if a person switches to a lower tar and nicotine brand of cigarette, the death rates for smokers are still 9 times higher than for nonsmokers. Smoking is a major cause in the development of emphysema, peptic ulcers, chronic bronchitis and diseases of the circulatory system, as well as cancer of the esophagus and bladder. Smokers die of strokes three times as often as nonsmokers. They have twice the risk of heart attacks. Smoking is responsible for 35 percent of all cancer deaths, is the cause of more than 500,000 deaths every year and more than 25 percent of all fires are caused by cigarette smoking.

The Benefits of Quitting

• Add years to your life
• Help to avoid many life-threatening diseases
• Get rid of smoker’s cough
• Feel and look better
• Experience a return of energy
• Stop smoke-related head and stomach aches
• Regain better sense of smell
• Enjoy tasting foods again
• Have smoke-free house, office, car, clothes and hair
• End smoker’s breath
• Have more money to spend (It’s like a raise in salary)
• Get rid of yellow teeth and stained fingers
• Stop burned holes in furniture, car, and clothes
• End dirty ashtrays
• Improve your self confidence and self image
• Set a good example for others

Statistics show that children who are reared in a home with smoking parents have more upper respiratory infections. These children are more likely to become smokers themselves.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/addiction/why-should-i-quit-smoking/

Promoting Health: Evaluating Alternative Therapies

The growing interest in alternative therapies is not difficult to understand. People sometimes turn to alternative therapies after a negative or unsatisfying experience with the way modern health care system provides “care”. Medical practitioners often have a little time to spend with their patients, many of whom they barely know. Patients feel shuffled in and out of offices, hooked up to one instrument after another, and finally handed a huge bill. They often come away from an impersonal medical business feeling confused, not really heard, and even scared.

Into this environment comes and “alternative” – or way to approach health and healing that is personal and caring. Practitioners of alternative therapies spend lots of time going over every aspect of a patients life. They don’t rush from one appointment to the next and seem genuinely interested in each patient. Insurance might not cover the costs, but the charges seem reasonable and all that endless paperwork is eliminated. Unlike many of conventional medicine, alternative therapists don’t compare their practices to a war against a disease. Rather, they focus on building up each person in order to ward off diseases. In so doing, they focus on the person rather than the disease. Therefore, the turn to alternative therapies is partly a reaction against a system perceived as impersonal, financially driven, and lacking in humility. Certainly many within the conventional medicine are caring professionals focused on doing their best for their patients. But confidence in the system as a whole is decreasing, and people are becoming more open to considering alternatives.

People should indeed pursue the therapies that are the most effective and affordable. They need not assume that conventional medicine is always the safest and most effective answer to curing human ills. But they must also be discerning.

Physical therapy, counseling, nutrition and massage are listed as alternative therapies used mostly by people with multiple body pains. Also most common are chiropractic, weight loss programs, acupuncture, relaxation therapy, mental imagery, hypnosis. Some of the therapies have much to offer patients and should be encouraged, some should be rejected completely and others fall somewhere in between.

• Complimentary therapies - such as diet, exercise, stress reduction that address broader lifestyle issues.
• Scientifically unproven therapies – such as many herbal remedies, with a foundation in established medical and scientific principles but for which very little scientific evidence exists.
• Scientifically questionable therapies – such as homeopathy, based on principles that contradict well-established scientific principles or that cannot be easily verified.
• Life energy therapies – such as therapeutic touch or “Reiki”, that assume the  existence of “life energy” that can be manipulated by a variety of techniques.
• Quackery and Fraud – that have been shown to have no reasonable benefit but that are still promoted by committed adherents. Fraud can occur with any therapy but especially will alternative therapies because the usually lack adequate research and rely on patient testimonials and validation.

We need not accept or reject alternative therapies as a whole, but we can evaluate when therapy based on the category/categories to which it belongs. Complimentary therapies generally seem to play an important role in promoting health where as quackery should always be exposed and rejected. Decisions about scientifically unproven theories, therapists based on life and energy and scientifically questionable therapies will have to be made case by case with reliance on the best scientific evidence available.

Read More: http://healthmad.com/alternative/alternative-therapies/