By Dr. Adam Seigers
Do you or does someone you know smoke? You probably already know that smoking increases the risk of lung cancer by about 20 times.
Less well known is that smoking also increases the risk of cancers of the lip, esophagus, pancreas, voice box, bladder, breast, kidney and even the uterine cervix.
Smoking increases blood pressure, causes accelerated coronary artery disease, and can result in erectile dysfunction in men.
If you are thinking about quitting smoking, first choose a quit date.
Look for reasons why you might smoke. Are you an especially anxious person?
Do you use your time to smoke as time away from work or stressful situations?
Do friends or family members smoke?
If so, you might encourage them to stop as well or to at least smoke outside.
Once you have chosen a quit date, evaluate your other attempts at smoking cessation.
And remember, the average person takes five to six tries to successfully stop smoking.
Critically, look at why you started smoking again as history is likely to repeat itself.
When you have decided you want to stop smoking, schedule a visit with your primary care provider to discuss options that might be helpful for you.
Some available options include the nicotine patch, gum, electronic cigarette, Wellbutrin, and also a newer highly effective medication called Chantix.
In addition to the support provided by your primary care provider, The New York State Quits line offers one free full year of patches with participation in their smoking cessation program. They can be reached at 1866-NY-QUITS.
For more information regarding smoking cessation please contact your primary care provider.
