Posted by Melissa Carnrick
Friday, August 8, 2008
Smoking, the Solution to Overpopulation
Want to lose weight? Smoking may be for you. Smoking decreases the size of one's appetite, making them losing body fat from eating less. However, the more you smoke, the more weight you lose in your wallet. One pack of cigarettes can cost you anywhere from $4 to $7, which a pack a day will cost you anywhere from $28 to $49 for a week.
If your a pack a day smoker, it is likely that you will begin smoking more and more over the next few years. At the rate of an increase of one extra cigarette a day per month. It is likely you will have severe health problems within 5-10 years, or possibly even face death.
The solution is easy: DON'T SMOKE!!
If you quit now within a matter of 10-20 years your lungs will heal, and your health will be that of a nonsmoker. You will be in the best health you have been in decades. The only thing you have to do is PUT DOWN THE CIGARETTES!
QUITTING, IT'S FOR THE CHILDREN
Quitting can be hard, but it is definitely worth it. The health risks that you are putting yourself under will disappear, helping your condition. There are nicotine patches and gums which can help you cope with your change in lifestyle. If neither of these work, find other means of oral fixation, such as popsicles, lollipops, etc. It will be hard work, but you NEED to stick with it. Get a friend to be your sponsor. Have them hold your cigarettes, making it so you need to call them when you want to smoke so that they can prevent you from doing so. After a while, you'll completely lose your addiction and need to smoke, assuming you haven't snuck a few during your quitting period.
So remember, if you want to help solve overpopulation, then by all means smoke. But if you want to live your life to the fullest, then you'd better quit now before your life is ended by that little friend in your hand.
Posted by Ryan
http://skeptisys.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/smoking.jpg
http://www.breakitdownblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/britney_pregnant_smoking.jpg
http://www.my-lifestyle-matters.com/ss/images/quit-smoking-hypnosis-cd.gif
To Smoke or Not to Smoke...
Cigarette smoking can have negative health effects on pretty much every part of your body. Cigarette smoke has 4,000 different toxic substances, so there’s no question that it can be very dangerous. Smoking causes hair to smell, it increases the risk of having a stroke, it can cause cataracts, loss of smell, thyroid disease, wrinkles, teeth discoloration, gum disease, cancers of the lips, mouth, throat, larynx, and esophagus, and a reduced sense of taste. That’s just the dangers smoking can cause to the head! On top of this, smoking can cause poor circulation, cancers of the lung, stomach, liver, pancreas, kidney, bladder, and colon, bronchitis, emphysema, shortness of breath, asthma, heart attack, osteoporosis, infertility, and weakened immune system. Does this sound bad? This long list doesn’t even cover many of the other health related effects of smoking, so why pick up this habit?
If smoking didn’t have some positive aspects to it, why would so many people do it? Many smokers feel that smoking actually does have its benefits. One of the benefits to smoking is that it helps a person deal with stress. Going out for a cigarette can put someone in a new setting that’s away from the stressful environment, and allows the person to clear their head. Taking deep puffs and holding them for a few moments is very similar to relaxation breathing, so smoking is able to relax a person. Another benefit is that it can help lessen a person’s feelings of anxiety and depression. This occurs when the nicotine in the cigarette travels to the brain and creates a chemical reaction that lifts a person’s mood or makes them less anxious. Yet another benefit to smoking is that it helps keep weight down. Cigarettes suppress appetite, keep food in your stomach for a longer period of time, and artificially speed up metabolism. Smoking can actually burn up to 300 calories a day.
Conclusion
Smokers have made it clear that smoking does have its benefits, but all of the dangerous effects clearly outweigh any positive elements smoking may have. Sure you can lessen your stress and keep your weight down, but increasing your risk for such a high number of health risks just isn’t worth it. Knowing this, if you don’t currently smoke don’t pick up the habit. If you do currently smoke, pinpointing what you think are the benefits of smoking can be a very good way to help you quit. Doing this will allow you to replace cigarettes with a healthier alternative. If you smoke to help fight stress, try going for a walk, playing with an animal, or taking time to do something you love instead of smoking a cigarette. Are you a smoker with depression? Taking a medication like Zyban will help you quit smoking by lessening withdrawal symptoms while also fighting depression. Are you afraid that when you quit smoking you’ll gain weight? Chew a piece of gum or have a piece of fruit or other healthy snack when your appetite kicks in.
If you’re a smoker and want more information on effective ways to quit, please visit the following link that has many useful tips: http://www.smokefree.gov/quit-smoking/index.html
-Message #3 (Complex, 2-Sided)
Sources:
Websites: 1, 2
Pictures: 1, 2, 3
Author: Stephanie
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Explanation of the Messages Above
Message #2 induces fear because it follows the four components of a fear message to a tee. It first discusses the risk of negative effects that can occur with smoking, like how it will ruin your lungs and waste your money. Next it shows that these negative effects will occur if no change is made when it says you will have severe health problems within 5-10 years. The message goes on to say that the solution is not to smoke. To solve this solution you have to quit, and numerous ways to do this are discussed. The message also uses vividness by using strong images, like a pregnant celebrity smoking, that are relevant to readers and will make them interested.
Message #3 is a good example of a complex, two-sided message because it discusses both sides of the issue and really makes you think. The message explains all of the health risks of smoking as well as some benefits smokers may find, and then a final thought stating that the risks are much greater than the benefits. Lots of information is presented from both sides so that a person reading it would have to think about the issue and take of all that into account when deciding what’s right for them.