Giving Up Smoking with RTE's The Afternoon Show and Duleek Pharmacy
Duleek Pharmacist Kathy Maher is featured on RTE’s ‘The Afternoon Show’ over a 10-week period giving advice about giving up smoking.
Kathy is on the show starting Monday 11th January. Be sure to tune in from 4pm each day. Click here to watch online.
On Thursday Pharmacist Kathy Maher was assigned to Billy, giving him expert advise on how to quit smoking. Follow the link to find out more.
Here's Advice to Help you Quit your habit:
Want to Give Up Smoking?
No matter how many years you have smoked for, or how many cigarettes you smoke, the human body is so resilient and your health and appearance will benefit enormously as soon as you start to QUIT.
Smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable illness and premature death in Ireland and the UK.
The great thing about quitting is that you can see benefits day after day, month after month and tear after year.
What Benefits will Your Body Feel?
- Within 20 minutes your circulation will improve, your heart rate and blood pressure will get lower. This reduces your risk of heart attack straight away.
- Within 8 – 12 hours the carbon monoxide level in your blood will drop and the oxygen level will go up.
- Within 24 - 48 hours all the carbon monoxide will have left your body.
- Within a few days your sense of smell and taste will start to improve.
- After 72 hours your breathing will improve and your energy levels will increase.
- Within 2 weeks there is already less strain on your heart
- Within 10 weeks your skin is smoother, your hair is healthier and your smile might even be brighter!
- Within 2 or 3 months your lung capacity can increase by up to 30%.
- Within 1 year your chance of heart attack drops by half and within 10 years the risk drops to almost the same as a non-smoker.
- Within 5 years the risk of smoking related cancers will be greatly reduced.
- Once you give up, your lungs start to fight back by coughing up tar. A mug full of tar builds up in the lungs of a 20 a day smoker over the period of a year. It is the toxic chemicals in tar that cause cancer.
- Within 15 years of giving up smoking, your risk of a heart attack is the same as someone who has never smoked
These are just some benefits. No matter what age you give up smoking, you will:
- look and feel better
- have fresher breath and cleaner teeth, hair, skin and fingers
- have more control of your life
- be fitter and have more energy
- reduce your risk of illness
- reduce the complications of existing illnesses
- have a better quality of life
- be a good role model for your children or grandchildren
- have more money
- have a healthier family as they will not be exposed to your second-hand smoke
ACTION PLAN!
Remember – failing to prepare is preparing for failure!
Start thinking NOW about the action you can take to help yourself quit – before you choose your QUIT DAY!
Tips to help your life become smoke free:
- Seek support from a healthcare professional. Pharmacists are ideally placed – they are experts in the field, and extremely accessible without an appointment. They always have an open door – 6 or 7 days a week, sometimes for long hours.
- Think positively, you are more likely to succeed
- Eating a healthy and balanced diet
- Increasing physical exercise
- Learning to deal with cravings
Tips for Dealing with Cravings – THE 4 D’s:
- DELAY – delay at least 3 minutes and the urge will pass
- DRINK – drink a glass of water or juice
- DISTRACT – distract yourself. Move away from the situation.
- DEEP – deep breath. Breathe slowly and deeply, it will help you to
relax.
A FINAL THOUGHT:
QUITTING SMOKING MAY BE ONE OF YOUR GREATEST ACHIEVEMENTS.
It is never too late.
Call to Duleek Pharmacy (041 9823326) to speak to one of our pharmacists for help, advice and support to assist you in your journey.
Further Information:
Duleek Pharmacist Kathy Maher will feature on RTE’s ‘The Afternoon Show’ for over a 10 week period giving advice about GIVING UP SMOKING.
- Watch Pharmacist Kathy on 'The Afternoon Show' using RTE's iPlayer
- You can also find further information on the show on the Irish Pharmacy Union Website.