A Natural Herb to Help You to Stop Smoking

Quitting smoking is not an easy thing to do. Nicotine, a drug present in tobacco is habit forming and creates a physiological and psychological addiction. There are various over the counter medicines available to help people quit smoking. Lobelia is a good example of a natural herb used to help people who are trying to quit smoking. It is generally found in the eastern United States and Canada. Its scientific name is Lobelia Inflata. Its benefits have always been controversial. It was used by native American Indians who used to smoke the herb in their peace pipes.

Lobelia, a natural herb is similar to nicotine in composition. It contains liboline, an active alkaline ingredient. It affects the same brain receptor sites and produces effects on the central nervous system, similar to nicotine. It is a strong herb and should be taken only under medical supervision. This drug is to be taken in extremely low doses and moderate doses mayx may lead to sweating, respiratory depression, coma and even death. Lobelia should be avoided by pregnant women, children and people with heart diseases. It should not be combined either with a muscle relaxant or alcohol. It poses serious health hazards when combined with tobacco.

Certain studies claim that lobelia affects the taste buds in such a way that cigarettes smoke becomes unpalatable. Lobelia is considered helpful in clearing the mucous from the throat and respiratory lining. Apart from helping people quit smoking it also helps in to heal certain problems in the body Lobelia does not contain any toxic by-product like conventional cigarettes and hence it can be safely used.

Lobelia also helps people in quitting smoking by taking care of the attendant withdrawal symptoms. Isolobelanine, an active ingredient in lobelia acts as a respiratory relaxant and helps promote calmness and tranquility. This effect of lobelia helps people in getting rid of the habit of smoking.

The major advantage of lobelia is that unlike nicotine, it is not addictive or habit forming. Its use can be discontinued once the caring to smoke has been overcome. It is available in the form of various over the counter medicines like lobelia cigarettes, tea, gums and inhalers. Use these with caution as an over dose can be poisonous.

In 1993, US Food and Development Administration had temporarily banned the sale of products containing lobelia. The reason given was that lobelia was not effective in helping people quit smoking. However, this ban was lifted later. Later reports showed that lobelia increased the levels of dopamine (a neurotransmitter) in the blood which induces feelings of pleasure and calmness.

Although lobelia is an effective herb for those trying to quit smoking, it is advisable to use it under medical supervision only. Johns Wort is another herb that can be used to quit smoking. It is reasonably safe only when used alone as it may interfere with over the counter products like antidepressants.

Smoking...

Smoking - a bad habit that people already addicted and difficult to quit and stop smoking.
Actually I dislike people smoking around me, because I hate the smell and I know that its bring many effects to us although we are the secondhand smoker. Around me, I have many friends who are smoking addiction. They can't survive without the cigarette even in one day. The reasons that influence them smoke are since they were young, they want to try the feeling of smoking and they think that smoking can let them look more cool and mature. Besides this, when they are adults, they said that smoking can help them reduce stress, sleepy, and tired. For them, if they are already smoke for a long period, they are more difficult to quit smoking compare with the smoker who are just smoke for short period only. From here, we can aware that the smoker addiction is really difficult to quit smoking so for those who are no smoking please don't try to smoke because it will bring many effects to you.

post by, Lai Siow Mei

I know it’s habit forming and it’s tough to quit, it’s hard to say no when your friends are doing it, but your lungs were never meant to have tar on top, so why would you start if it’s so hard to stop? I hope this video can let the smoker say NO WAY and never smoke!!!

Post by Goh

Anti-smoking images for cigerette packaging

I dislike smoking, I hate the smell and I think it's a dirty habit, the sooner someone gives it up the better. So I'm glad the government is rolling out this new anti-smoking campaign. This disturbing graphic imagery certainly would dissuade me from smoking, I realise it can be hard to give up but surely seeing imagery like this would make you want to change your life for the better.

Post by Goh

Smoking Kills

Do u believe Smoking Kills, if not check this out.....

If you still dont believe then this Image is 4 u !!

I think people who do smoking should see these images so that they can see their future and they should stop smoking.

Post by Goh

smoking close to children

My Opinion

Children breathe in smoke from the adults around them so If adults smoke, the children in their family can suffer more sickness. Finally please help your children be healthy such as smoke

outside, not in the car or house, don't smoke next to babies or children and don't smoke when you are pregnant or breastfeeding. The most important one is please quit smoking.

Post by Goh

Why the world wants smoking

On any given day, 45 million adult smokers light up despite the known dangers of smoking cigarettes. Americans typically view smoking as an individual choice that needs to be respected just like the myriad of other harmful behaviors society tolerates. Nevertheless, there is strong societal pressure to curb the sale and use of cancer-causing tobacco products. This raises the question, should the government be able to regulate our unhealthy lifestyle choices? While other decisions of personal health may be left to the individual, in the case of smoking the government has made a popular case that “lighting up” affects others in a unique way. This fundamental argument has been playing out on the national stage in the politics of smoking bans.

The Science of Smoking

In the last twenty-five years, tobacco companies and anti-smoking non-profits alike have educated the general public on the dangers of smoking. Most people are aware that smoking on a regular basis is unhealthy, but popular beliefs about the effects of second-hand smoke are more varied, and for good reason: the public receives mixed information. According to Dr. Cheryl Healton, the CEO and president of the American Legacy Foundation, the parent company of The Truth campaign, about 50,000 Americans die each year due to excess cancer, heart attacks, asthma, low birth weight, and other problems caused by second-hand smoke. Most organizations against smoking regulation disagree. They claim the science behind statements like Healton’s is inconclusive. Many scientific organizations however, are confident in the results. In 2002, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, an arm of the World Health Organization, analyzed most published research concerning tobacco smoking and cancer. One correlation observed in the study was “a statistically significant and consistent association between lung cancer risk in spouses of smokers and exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke from the spouse who smokes.” Proponents of regulation have cited such evidence in calling for a ban against smoking in public places. In addition to sparing passersby from second-hand smoke, public smoking bans may aid smokers in their quest to quit. Dr. Eric Westman, a nicotine and smoking cessation researcher at Duke University, has helped people overcome nicotine addiction for fifteen years. He explains that smoking bans help people quit not only because they make smoking illegal in certain situations, but also because they increase the social stigma of smoking. An internal Phillip Morris document corroborates this observation, finding that individuals who face workplace smoking bans “consume 11 percent to 15 percent less than average and quit at a rate that is 84 percent higher than average.” Many countries have already instituted wide-ranging prohibitions on public smoking. Ireland, Norway, Scotland, Sweden, Malta, Italy, and New Zealand have already established countrywide smoke-free laws. France and the United Kingdom are soon to enact their bans. In 2004, the small country of Bhutan went as far as to ban all tobacco sales. The United States, however, has typically been more skeptical of such legislation and currently only eleven U.S. states have bans on indoor public smoking, though many cities have enacted their own bans.

Saving Smokers from Themselves

While there are strong arguments for regulation of public smoking, consequences for the health of the individual are not necessarily enough to justify legislation. For instance, if bans or heavy regulation were applied to other health-related behaviors, such as overeating, many more people would claim that the government had overstepped its authority. Why is smoking any different? When asked this question, Dr. Healton replied, “obesity does not harm the health of others.” She alludes to a key aspect of bans: they typically only outlaw smoking in public arenas, where one’s decision to smoke inhibits another’s freedom to eschew second hand smoke. Take, for example, the newly-proposed city-wide bans on the use of trans-fats in restaurants, a type of lipid that has been linked to cancer. Trans-fat bans parallel smoking bans in that the government is intervening to curb the effect of the actions of others, whether an individual or a business, on citizens health. However, it is important to note that in these cases the government is only legislating in the public realm: individuals are free to eat what and how much they want, while similarly, smokers can smoke in private areas.

The Future of Smoking Bans

While it can and has been argued that bans on public smoking overextend the government’s power over the private lives of its citizens, strong scientific evidence support the conclusion that allowing individuals to smoke can violate the health of innocent bystanders. In an interview, Dr. Healton predicted, “the global trend will be greater restrictions on where one can smoke.” Across the world, this seems to be coming true, and with increasing regulation, the Marlboro man may soon be off the open plain, and resigned to smoke in the privacy of his own home.

In My Opinion:

The people who smoke doesn't get pleasure of smoking. They just do it because of time killing, just because of habit and all other stupid things. One of the ways to make it less killing you is pipe smoking. In some cases it can replace you cigarettes and make you some pleasure of smoking.

Post by Goh

Language - One element of cultural

A language is considered to be a system of communicating with other people using sounds, symbols and words in expressing a meaning, idea or thought. This language can be used in many forms, primarily through oral and written communications as well as using expressions through body language.

Primarily there is a distinction between one language and another; usually it may be through country boundaries, population culture, demographics and history. Each country through combinations of blending cultures, environment and other factors has evolved their own unique style of a language.

Besides this, language not only is the tool to communicate it also cause unity in our country for example in Malaysia, have a multicultural nation of diversity in unity where Malays, Chinese, Indians and the indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak and have a different language but live in cultural harmony. Such as the national, or official language in Malaysia, Bahasa Malaysia is established as such under Article 152 of the Constitution, which also safeguards other languages by stipulating that no person may be prohibited or prevented from using (except for official purposes) or from teaching or learning any other language. As the national language, Bahasa Malaysia has to be used for official purposes which includes its use by federal and state governments. By the same constitutional amendment the status of Bahasa Malaysia may not be questioned, and any amendment to Article 152 can only be made with the consent of the Conference of Rulers. The ethnic Chinese were speakers of Hokkien, Cantonese, Hakka, Teochew, Hainanese, and the ethnic Indian were speak Tamil, Punjabi and Urdu. Although our mother tongue is different but we'll learn and respect language of others races for example most Malay and Indian learn Chinese with encourage their child study Chinese in primary and secondary school because it is a much more challenging language to learn.

However, have many languages in the world, English is considered very important because it is an international language, and we can use it to communicate with people from many other countries, not only those whose native language is English. For example, there is a Japanese teacher in UKM who knows little Malay puts communicates primarily through English when not in class. Therefore, English is an important language for business. There is much valuable information in books and on the Internet that is only available in English. The students in UKM in some majors such as psychology, economics, and even computers use some text books that are only in English.

In conclusion, language is one of important element of cultural because it helps millions of people communicate within this world of different dialect, cultures and within this world of business. it is a part of speech that is important and sometimes needed for one's survival. Language is perhaps the human race's most important invention ever. It allows us to communicate with one another and spread ideas. Without language there would be no way that humans would ever have progressed past the stone age.

10 Ways to Send a Clear Message to Your Teenager

1. Use your active listening skills and watch out for those door slammers.

2. Talk often with your teen to bring out positive opinions, ideas, and behaviors by using an affirmative tone and body language.

3. Treat your teenager with the same respect you would have them treat you. Say 'hi', 'I love you', 'how was your day', etc.

4. Your tone of voice is extremely important. Yelling simply doesn't work. The loud noise will shut down the listener (your teen) and you will not get through. If you feel the need to yell, 'time out' of the conversation until you have better control.

5. Be precise and detailed about what you expect. Write it down and use an Action Plan if you feel there is a need.

6. If you're giving your teenager instructions, write them down. It's a fail-safe for teens and adults. This way they will remember what they are expected to do and you can feel sure that you 'told' them correctly. Remember, to-do lists will keep you stress free.

7. Do things together one-on-one and with the whole family. Good times often bring about great conversations, and wonderful memories.

8. 'Do as I say, not as I do' doesn't work. Modeling is the best way of learning. You are your teenager's model and they will emulate your behaviors.

9. Never shut your teen out to show that you disapprove of their behavior. If you need time before you can talk to them about something that has upset you, tell them that you need time. Don't walk away silent.

10. "Because I said so" actually works when you are being pulled into a power struggle in discipline situations. You are the parent, and because of this, you do have the final say. Teenagers know this and trust you because of it. But do try to explain your reasoning whenever possible.

While many parents feel it is close to impossible to have a conversation with their teenager, there are ways. Your child really isn't becoming a new special breed of alien. They're just growing up and they still do want to connect with you. Try these tips to get, and keep, the conversation rolling in your home.

Post by Goh

Best Method to Stop Smoking: Cold Turkey or Gradual Withdrawal?

Basically, there are two major methods of stopping smoking: the “cold turkey” approach when you quit abruptly and do not take another puff anymore (can be recommended for those whose nicotine addiction is still relatively weak) and the method of gradual withdrawal.

Many people opt for the second approach, especially those who have smoked for many years, who consume more than a pack a day, whose nicotine addiction is too strong in order to attempt the abrupt cessation, and those who have already failed, maybe several times, in trying to quit smoking “cold turkey”.

The method of gradual withdrawal is best suited for people who do not want to abruptly change their smoking habits. They can continue smoking, but the trick is to slowly and gradually cut down the number of cigarettes they puff every day. Say, if a smoker is used to consume two packs a day, which are 40 cigarettes, he can start his smoking cessation process by consuming just one cigarette less the next day. He can continue smoking 39 cigarettes a day for about a week, after which one more daily ‘lung rocket” is out. With this approach, the former smoker will become completely smoke-free in about nine months, without any unpleasant symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. The process can be facilitated by reducing the amount of consumed cigarettes at a higher rate, if the smoker tolerates that well, but a faster rate is usually not recommended because it can easily trigger full-blown withdrawal symptoms since the body won’t have enough time to adjust to a reduce intake of nicotine.

Most smoking people will agree that the gradual withdrawal method is a very efficient and comfortable approach to smoking cessation. Remember that the key to success is not to reduce the amount of daily smoked cigarettes too abruptly, but to stretch the whole process for nine plus months so that quitting smoking should come naturally and pain-free.

Finally i just want to say giving up smoking can not only add years to your life, it can help stop premature aging before it's too late.

Post by Goh

Skin-ageing effects of smoking

The skin is affected by tobacco smoke in the following ways:

Tobacco smoke released into the environment has a drying effect on the skin's surface
Smoking restricts blood vessels, which reduces the amount of blood flowing to the skin, thus depleting the skin of oxygen and essential nutrients
Some research suggests that smoking may reduce the body's store of Vitamin A, which provides protection against some skin-damaging agents produced by smoking

Another likely explanation is that squinting in response to the irritating nature of the smoke, and the puckering of the mouth when drawing on a cigarette, cause wrinkling around the eyes and mouth

Recent research has shown that the skin ageing effects of smoking may be due to increased production of an enzyme that breaks down collagen in the skin. Collagen is the main structural protein of the skin which maintains skin elasticity.

From this explained i feel very luck because i have had at keeping my skin younger looking is directly due to the fact that I have never been a smoker..

Post by Goh

Hurricane stress causes teen smoking

Researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston recently met to discuss the findings of their report that shows teenagers directly affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita are more likely to smoke cigarettes.

The study surveyed and tracked more than 5,000 students in the Beaumont and Port Arthur areas during the spring 2006 semester, 6 to 9 months after Hurricane Katrina.

It also compared the results with students who did not have the same experiences. The results showed that almost 38 percent of students who reported they had a family member hurt or killed in the hurricane also reported that they are now smoking. Only 13 percent of students who did not endure death or injury in the family said they smoked.

Students most affected by the hurricanes, such as those who experienced losses of family, friends and homes, had the greatest smoking rates, said Angela Meshack, the primary author of the study.

Students who were still living in temporary housing and who were absent from school for more than two months due to the hurricanes were twice as likely to smoke than their counterparts, the study found.

"Raised stress levels lead to more smoking. It was not shocking to find that relationship after the hurricanes," said Alfred McAlister, a behavioral science professor at UT-Houston's School of Public Health and an author of the study said. He said the study shows teenagers turned to smoking to cope with the disruption.

"The hurricanes had an emotional impact on the youth, and we need to recognize that and give them the help they need," McAlister said. "Otherwise, they use tobacco as a crutch, and then they become addicted."

Darah Waldrip, spokeswoman for Texas Tobacco Prevention said the program has been placing special attention on smoking in Jefferson County, which is along the upper Gulf Coast, by establishing comprehensive tobacco control programs in the schools and around the community. They also conduct outreach efforts such as the anti-tobacco advertisements.

Meshack said she and authors of the study are working on a number of steps to help students after disasters and also prepare for possible future events.

The study was a result of the "Youth Tobacco Survey" that is taken by students in Texas every other year. The students will take it again in 2008. About 22 percent of American teenagers smoke, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"I imagine the next survey will have more normalization," Waldrip said.

post by, Lai

Teen Smoking Screening Quiz

Question: Have you found lighters, matches or crushed tobacco in your teen’s room, backpack or pants pocket?
Yes.
No.

Question: Does your teen’s room smell like smoke or stale smoke?
Yes.
No.

Question: Does your teen use a lot of air freshener in his/her room?
Yes.
No.

Question: Does your teen put a towel down to block the crack under their bedroom door?
Yes.
No.

Question: Does your child come home from school or a friend’s house with his/her clothes and hair smelling like smoke?
Yes.
No.

Question: Do your teen’s friends smoke?
Yes.
No.

Question: Does your teen have an unexplained cough or morning cough?
Yes.
No.

Question: Has your teen lost weight?
Yes.
No.

Question: Does your teen brush his/her teeth more often and at odd times of the day?
Yes.
No.

Question: Is your teen evasive when you ask where they have been?
Yes.
No.

If the answer all is yes, your teen is smoking. You’ll need to deal with this issue by taking a look at your feelings and becoming confident in what your message is to your teen about smoking. Then communicate that message to your teen in a loving and firm manner. Talk to your teen about quitting and find him/her the help he/she needs to quit.

This teen smoking screening quiz is to help you sort out your thoughts on your teen and if he or she is smoking. The only way to know, is to use your communication and discipline parenting skills. Try it..

Post by Goh

25 Ways to Quit Smoking

25 Ways to Quit Smoking | Funny Jokes at JibJab

post by, Lai

Anti-smoking ads help 1 million quit

Anti-smoking advertising has become so effective that it is now more powerful than GPs in persuading smokers to kick their habit, a study has claimed.

New shock tactics such as posters showing cigarettes dripping fat to demonstrate the effect of smoking on arteries, have helped quadruple the effectiveness of the government's anti-smoking campaign, according to research by the Tobacco Education Campaign Tracking study for February 2004.

The study shows advertising campaigns prompted 32% of recent attempts to kick the habit while GPs were responsible for just 21%.

The study also shows that a two-year campaign run by a coalition of the NHS, Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation has been far more effective than previous anti-smoking campaigns run by the Department of Health.

"By spreading the load, there was less chance that smokers would feel victimised," said a report on the campaign, which won a gold award at the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising effectiveness awards this week.

The anti-tobacco campaign, created by advertising agencies Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO, Bartle Bogle Hegarty and Euro RSCG London, has already beaten its targets and persuaded 1 million people to give up smoking, according to the report.

"We wanted to bring smokers with us rather than turn them against us," said Clare Hutchinson of Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO.

The two-year campaign was successful because it gave smokers several reasons to quit rather than focusing exclusively on health.

One campaign, created by Abbott Mead Vickers for the NHS, showed children breathing out cigarette smoke to emphasise the dangers of passive smoking.

Bartle Bogle Hegarty and Cancer Research UK created a campaign to show that low-tar cigarettes were not less dangerous, by giving sharks and other deadly animals such as sharks nice names such as Susie and Rosie.

Smoking costs the NHS £1.5bn each year. It kills 120,000 annually, more than five times the collective death toll from car crashes, alcohol and drug abuse accidents, murders, suicides and Aids.

Post by Goh

Nicotine Damages Brain Cell Quality

Human reports as well as animal studies have recorded accelerated motor activity, learning and memory deficits in offsprings of mothers exposed to nicotine during pregnancy. This study, conducted by Dr. T. S. Roy, Department of Anatomy, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India, is the first to investigate actual physiological changes of the cerebral cortex of rats after prenatal nicotine exposure. Several groups of experimental rats were exposed to varying levels of nicotine reaching up to that experienced by a heavy smoker. Animals were examined at different periods after birth. Observable effects included significantly reduced thickness of the cerebral cortex, smaller cerebral cortex neurons, and reduced brain weight. Also noted was an overall decrease in "dendritic branching" (connections to other brain cells), as seen in the camera lucida drawings at right. The present study also shows that the greater the dose of nicotine, the greater the biological effects upon the offspring. This research provides an excellent biological model to support the many other studies linking increased hyperactivity, attention deficits, lower IQ, and learning disabilities in children with parents who smoked during pregnancy.

post by, Lai

Impact of smoking on women

The lack of large-scale studies that focus specifically on female populations makes it difficult to fully assess the impact of smoking on women. However, women show the same responses to cigarette smoking as men. Depending on the number of cigarettes smoked per day, the age of beginning cigarette smoking, and the amount of inhalation, women have death rates similar to men.

In general, women who are smokers experience more illness and chronic conditions than women who have never smoked. According to the American Cancer Society, women who smoke heavily have nearly three times more bronchitis and emphysema, 75% more chronic sinusitis, and 50% more peptic ulcers than nonsmokers. The incidence of illness, such as influenza, for women smokers is 20% higher for women who smoke than for those who don't. Currently employed women smokers report more days lost from work due to illness and injury than working women who do not smoke. In addition, women under 65 years of age who smoke have more limited physical activity than those who have never smoked. More than that, women smokers show an increased rate of heart attacks, cancer, oral diseases, and lung conditions.

post by, Lai

Smoking...

What If You Smoke?

NEVER SMOKE AROUND CHILDREN.
Children are especially sensitive to the dangers of secondhand smoke.
If you smoke, try to smoke only in an open area away from your family.
Many of the substances stay in the air even after the cigarette, cigar, or pipe is gone.

What Can You Do to Protect Yourself and Your Family Outside of Your Home?
Let family, friends and people you work with know that you do care if they smoke around you.
In your car, do not smoke or allow others to smoke while the windows are rolled up.
In restaurants and bars, ask to sit in the non-smoking area.
Make sure your child's day-care, school and after-school programs are smoke-free.
Ask your employer to make sure you do not have to breathe other people's smoke at work.

post by, Lai

Are you still want smoking???

The pictures give awareness to you? The cigarette box will add the picture to show the effect for smoking from this year, so i hope from the picture the smoker can stay off smoking and dont let the cigarette destroy your life !

Post by Goh

It's hard for someone to stop smoking.... But! try to stop...

(Makes a lot of sense! I think they are really serious about non-smoking which is good.)

There are two types of coping skills you can use when you have
an urge to smoke: behavioral and mental.

Behavioral coping skills are things that you can do to reduce
the urge to smoke. These include leaving the situation, taking a
deep breath, or reading a book.


Mental coping skills are things that you can tell yourself to
reduce the urge to smoke. These include, “I feel better,” or
“smoking is not an option.”

post by Nazirah

Symptom-symptom smoking include.......

-cravings
-irritability, agitation, depression and anxiety
-insomnia and disturbed sleeping patterns
-increased appetite and weight gain
-restlessness and loss of concentration
-headaches
-coughing and sore throat
-body aches and pains
-stomach and bowel upsets

DON'T SMOKE!!!!!

BORED??? WANT TO SMOKE??
OUR PLEASURE TO REMIND YOU GUYS ABOUT IT.
BUT NOT FROM A WORD BUT FROM THIS VIDEO.
CLICK ON IT TO KNOW WHAT ARE WE GOING TO TELLS.

Take 5 and spend your time with watch this video. I hope you are not like this monkey that can't think properly with what he have done.
We are laughing at them when they smoke because it's funny but why don't we laughing at ourself (smoker) when we are smoke. We as a human being that have brilliant brain to judging what are bad and good for ours life but they aren't. Take time to think it.

SAve the MONEY not waste it!!

Does raising the cost of cigarettes keep teens from smoking?

The answer is YES! Raising the cost of cigarettes through state taxing has been the biggest deterrent of teen smoking. According to the American Cancer Association, ‘Price may be the most effective way to prevent teens from becoming daily smokers. A joint study from the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research matched price hikes with teen smoking rates over six years. They found that a 10% price increase would decrease the number of children who started to smoke between 3% and 10%, depending on their stage of smoking, such as experimentation, beginning daily smoking, or relatively heavy daily smoking.’

So if your state is voting on a tax increase for cigarettes, support it!

How to be a good malaysian??

With CI, does that make you a better person/Malaysian? Why?

Malays, Chinese, Indians and many other ethnic groups have lived together in Malaysia for generations. All these cultures have influenced each other, creating a truly Malaysian culture.The largest ethnic groups in Malaysia are the Malays, Chinese and Indians. In Sabah and Sarawak, there are a myriad of indigenous ethic groups with their own unique culture and heritage. How i going to survive? Of course with CI, it make me being a good person or Malaysian. Why do i said that??.It is because i can be and manage myself with others culture without difficulty and also i can understand them much more better. Not just for cultures that we have in Malaysia but also in global. With knowledge or CI that i already have about some culture. How?? I can use it to get know the way i need to be and know what thing that i could or couldn't do to avoid problems. We need to respect others culture so they will respect our culture too. With it, we can live in peace like Malaysia. One of the country that live in many culture.That all i need to say.Thanks for your attention.

No thanks, I need to smoke

If you take even a quick look at the newspaper, you can see that there are massive public policy efforts aimed to curb smoking. States are raising their cigarette taxes. Cities around the world are banning smoking in restaurants. Even Holland (where it seems like almost every vice is legal) will no longer allow cigarette smoking in restaurants and public places. What makes it so hard to quit smoking.

That would, of course, be a topic for a whole book, and not just one blog entry. It does provide a good excuse for me to talk a bit about some research that I have done with Miguel Brendl, Claude Messner, and Kyungil Kim. The question of interest to us is how a goal or a need affects what you like. For now, let's think about smoking.

The need to smoke is affected by many factors. Some of them involve a physiological addiction to nicotine. However, the situation also affects the need to smoke. Smoking is often associated with

drinking coffee, for example, so a cup of coffee will often trigger the need to smoke in a smoker. So, the strength of a goal will grow and shrink. Sometimes, the need will seem desperate, but at other times (say right after having a cigarette), it won't seem so strong at all.

When the need to smoke is triggered, it affects what you like and dislike at that moment. The idea that likes and dislikes can change over short periods of time shouldn't be surprising. After all, you may grab a cd to listen to in the car in the morning, only to find that you no longer feel like listening to it in the evening. Foods that were quite appealing on one day may be much less appealing on another day.

One factor that changes your preferences is the goals that are engaged at any given moment. Most of us have the intuition that if you have any strong goal, then your preference for things that would help you satisfy that goal will increase. If you really need to smoke, then suddenly, cigarettes will look really good to you. We call this effect of goals valuation. That is, having an active goal makes things related to that goal more valuable. There is some experimental evidence for this kind of valuation.

What is potentially more interesting, though, is that in a 2003 paper in the Journal of Consumer Behavior, and a 2007 paper in Emotion, we find strong evidence for devaluation. That is, having an active goal will decrease your liking for things that are unrelated to that goal. So, a smoker with a high need to smoke is less interested in things like DVD players, french fries, and camping tents than that same person is when the need to smoke is low.

We found evidence for this in many ways. In one study with smokers, we had smokers participate in a study after sitting in a long lecture class. They could not smoke during class. One group was asked to stay in a classroom and was given a cup of coffee (to stimulate the need to smoke). This group really had a high need to smoke. The other group went outside the classroom. They were also given a cup of coffee, but the experimenter lit up a cigarette, and all of the participants did too. For this group, the coffee was a way to help us make sure enough time went by that the nicotine would help dull the need to smoke.

Before getting on to what they thought the study was really about, the participants were asked if they were interested in buying raffle tickets. For half of the people, the prize was three cartons of cigarettes that would be given out in a drawing a week later. For the other half of the people, the prize was an amount of money equivalent to what you'd pay for three cartons of cigarettes. So what happened?

People who were offered the raffle to win cigarettes were somewhat more likely to buy tickets if they had a high need to smoke than if they had a low need to smoke. That is, there was some evidence for this idea of valuation.

People who were offered the raffle to win cash bought tickets if they had a low need to smoke. The group in the classroom (who had a high need to smoke) bought almost no tickets at all. That is, when people had a high need to smoke, they were really uninterested in cash.

There are two important things to take away from this. First, even though people know abstractly that cash can be used to purchase cigarettes, their goals have a very concrete effect on their preferences. So, things that are not obviously related to smoking are devaluated. Second, the people who are inside the classroom and need a cigarette probably walked out of the classroom after the study and smoked a cigarette. Presumably, if we had offered this raffle to them after having their cigarette instead, they would have been more interested in buying tickets to win cash. So, cigarettes can change people's preferences pretty rapidly.

This means that a smoker trying to quit smoking can talk quite a bit about how they are going to resist the urge to smoke. But when that need gets strong, the goal system is going to make cigarettes more and more attractive and is going to make everything else less and less attractive to help make the smoker satisfy their need to smoke. This operation of the motivational system is usually a good thing. It operates for all sorts of beneficial goals that people have. But for habitual smokers, it creates a lot of problems.

Post by Goh

Kill you, smokers!!!!

The issue of smoking can be thought of from many views as in personal health, environmental, and impact on national health care so don't make the smoking away life....

Post by Goh

Quit Smoking Products

The findings of the research allowed us to choose three most effective quit smoking treatment products for 2008. When choosing the best treatments, we based our decisions on the quality of the product, the time necessary to achieve the desired results, and the satisfaction of the product users. All three treatments are OTC (over the counter) drugs that do not need a prescription to purchase.

1. Nicocure

Nicocure Health Supplement is a herbal anti-smoking treatment. The product formula
includes a combination of plants and roots that help reduce nicotine craving. Lobelia Inflata,

Licorice Root and Passion Flower work to calm the person and reduce the stress of the nervous system; Mullein Root improves the function of the respiratory tract; bioflavonoids found in Hawthorne Berries promote enhanced cardiac action. Nicocure Health also contains Bioperine? which ensures effective bioavailability of the product herbal ingredients.

2. Freedom Patch

The Freedom Patch is an anti-smoking herbal formulation. The patch is nicotine-free and

contains natural ingredients (e.g. Lobelia Inflata, Nux Vomica) that help the person cope with

the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal by cleansing the system of nicotine and other toxins. The

active ingredients get into the bloodstream through the skin and produce a sensation similar to that of nicotine intake in that they keep the person calm and relaxed. Simultaneously, the formula detoxifies the blood and creates the feeling of disgust to the tobacco taste and smell. Typically, nicotine cravings drop drastically within the first 10-15 days of use.

3. Zero Nicotine

Zero Nicotine is a herbal anti-smoking patch designed to fight nicotine addiction, withdrawal

symptoms and relieve the body of the toxic chemicals and carcinogens. The product natural

ingredients act as a substitute for nicotine and therefore reduce the desire to smoke within the first 10-15 days of use. Zero Nicotine formula also includes plants (e.g. Gotu Kola, Hops, Skullcapthat, Echinacea Powder) which help the body cope with the feelings of increased hunger and irritability during the withdrawal process, reduce the stress levels and improve the general immune system.

Post by Goh

How common is smoking among teenagers?

According to the Health Promotion Unit, in 1993 more than one quarter (27%) of those aged 15-24 years smoked regularly, which is almost identical to the 28% smoking rate in the population as a whole.

In 1988 one study found that 57% of Irish adolescent boys under 18 years were smokers, according to the World Health Organisation definition. In another study two-thirds of young people in Dublin had smoked at some point. In Britain, more adolescent girls than boys now smoke and this is probably the case in Ireland as well.

The fall in the total number of smokers is caused by more smokers giving up rather than less young people starting.

It is estimated that in the UK in 1993, the cigarette industry spent £100 million on promotional activities while the government spent £10 million on anti-smoking measures. Revenue from cigarette sales to under 16 year olds, (which are illegal), was estimated to be worth £108 million per year in tax receipts. The discrepancies and disincentives for tackling the problem are obvious. The Irish figures are not thought to be proportionately different, except that taxes are higher and health promotion spending is lower.

Smoking is by far the greatest cause of death in developed countries. It poses a big risk, especially among those who start smoking cigarettes regularly in their teenage years. If they keep smoking steadily, about half will eventually be killed by tobacco (about one quarter in old age plus one quarter in middle age).

Those killed by tobacco in middle age (35-69 years) lose an average of 20-25 years on non-smoker life expectancy and most of those killed by tobacco are not particularly ‘heavy’ smokers (but most did start in their teenage years).

The earlier you start smoking the less likely you are to give up. Those who do not smoke regularly in their teens are much less likely to do so as an adult. Those teenagers who smoke regularly are also more likely to drink alcohol regularly.

Stopping smoking works. Even in middle age, stopping before you get cancer or some other disease reduces most of the later excess risk of death from tobacco, but the benefits of stopping at an earlier age are even greater.

Post by Goh

Nicotine Gum

Nicorette Microtab 2mg 105 Sublingual Tablets
Nicorette Microtab is a nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). It is used to relieve withdrawal symptoms and reduce the cravings for nicotine which people get when they stop smoking or when they are cutting down the number of cigarettes they smoke while trying to stop smoking.

Nicotrol Gum 2mg Mint 105 Pieces

Sugar Free Nicotrol Gum is intended to ease such withdrawa

l symptoms by providing your body with nicotine. This leaves your mind free to concentrate on overcoming your psychological desire to smoke.

Sugar Free Habitrol Gum provides a flexible, convenient course of treatment for smokers who want to quit.

Nicobrevin 28 Day Treatment 48 Caps
Nicobrevin is a mild, nicotine free medicine,

which gradually lessens smoking withdrawal symptoms and enables smokers to quit immediately without distress and without putting more nicotine into their systems.

Nicotinell Fruit Gum 2mg 12 Pieces

Quit smoking has never been so easy! Now with Nicotinell gum and its bold flavour, you can control your nicotine cravings anytime. The soft chewing Sugar Free nicotine gum is now available in 2mg and 4mg. Nicotinell gum comes with Regular Strength and Extra Strength. We supply Nicotinell Gum 96 pieces in mint flavour and fruit flavour.

post by, Lai

The Smoker’s Vow

With this puff I enslave myself
to a lifetime of addiction.
While I can’t promise to always love you,
I do promise to obey every craving and
support my addiction to you
no matter how expensive you become.

I will let no husband or wife,
no family member or friend,
no doctor or any other health professional,
no employer or government policy,
no burns or no stench,
no cough or raspy voice,
no cancer or emphysema,
no heart attack or stroke,
no threat of loss of life or limbs,
come between us.

I will smoke you forever
from this day forth,
for better or worse,
whether richer or poorer,
in sickness and in health,
till death do us part!

“You may now light the cigarette.”

“I now pronounce you a full-fledged smoker.”

post by, Lai

Relapse: If You Do Smoke Again

If you slip and smoke, don't be discouraged. Many former smokers tried to stop several times before they finally succeeded.

What to Do
1. Recognize that you have had a slip. A slip means that you have had a small setback and smoked a cigarette or two. But your first cigarette did not make you a smoker to start with, and a small setback does not make you a smoker again.

2. Don't be too hard on yourself. One slip doesn't mean you're a failure or that you can't be a nonsmoker, but it is important to get yourself back on the nonsmoking track immediately.

3. Identify the trigger. Exactly what was it that prompted you to smoke? Be aware of the trigger and decide now how you will cope with it when it comes up again.

4. Know and use the coping skills described above. People who know at least one coping skill are more likely to remain nonsmokers than those who do not know any.

5. Sign a contract with yourself to remain a nonsmoker.

6. If you think you need professional help, see your healthcare provider for extra motivation to stop smoking. You may want to ask about nicotine gum or a nicotine patch as an alternative source of nicotine while you break the smoking habit.

post by, Lai

Cigarette Modification Products

Far and away our best seller, E-Z QUIT, has already helped hundreds of thousands of smokers for over 15 years. E-Z QUIT is a smokeless cigarette substitute that fills your need to do something with your hands and mouth, and to inhale deeply. Use E-Z QUIT by itself or together with any other quit smoking method.

One Step at a Time is a filtering system that allows you to gradually filter and remove up to 90% of the nicotine and tar in cigarettes. Four filters are in the system. Each filter removes progressively more nicotine and tar from your cigarettes. Quit one step at a time!












Super Stop cigarette filters help cut tar and nicotine without cutting cigarette taste. For smokers who aren't quite ready to quit, but who want to reduce tar and nicotine.

Aquafilters use wet filtration to remove tar and nicotine from cigarette smoke. Scientific research confirms that wet filtration is the most effective method to remove the tar and nicotine from cigarette smoke.

Simply Quit simulated cigarette gives you something to puff on instead of real cigarettes. Contains no drugs, no nicotine, but has simulated tobacco flavor.

post by, Lai