I think we all know that smoking of any kind is hazardous to your health. It's been said for years that getting lung cancer from smoking was usually your biggest threat.

However just recently they have linked smoking to bladder cancer. Researchers from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center conducted a study that the majority of the population is not yet aware that this is true.

The researchers compiled data from all studies in the Medline database that had been conducted on the connection between bladder cancer and smoking between the years 1975 and 2007.

The correlation between smoking behavior and bladder cancer risk, they found, was strong. For example, one study found that a person's risk of developing bladder cancer goes down by 40 percent within the first four years of quitting smoking.

Few smokers have been aware of the link between smoking and bladder cancer. Only 22 percent of bladder cancer patients surveyed knew that smoking increases the risk of developing the disease.

Bladder cancer is one of the most expensive forms of cancer to treat. In the United States, it is the fourth most common cancer in men and the ninth most common in women. More than 47,000 cases new cases have been diagnosed in men and 16,000 in women each year.

Now I know you hear cases all the time about ways to quit smoking. There must be hundreds of programs to help people quit smoking. Some work very well and some don't.work too well.

I still believe the best way to quit smoking is by going "cold turkey". Many people try that and it works for some for awhile but it isn't too long before they are back smoking again.

The key to stop smoking is nothing more then a "positive mindset". You must make a strong commitment to quit before you will ever be successful making it happen.

I can speak with authority about that because I stopped smoking "cold turkey" about 25 years ago. I'll never forget that day.

At the time, I was a salesman and had made the decision to quit smoking one morning before making my calls on my customers. The first person I visited, I ask the question, "Do you smoke". He said, "Yes I do". I said, "Well here's a half pack of cigarettes you can have."

He was dumfounded and couldn't believe I had decided to quit smoking "cold turkey". He said he had tried many times to stop smoking himself but never could. I said, "Once you are fully committed to stop you will do it but not until then.

I have never ever had a craving to smoke a cigarette since that time. I had tried several times to quit before that but never could until I made that strong commitment. I never took any drugs to quit either. (I'm not even sure if there were non-smoking drugs then)

Now there are many non-smoking drugs available. One in particular today is being warned by The Veterans Administration (VA) that the popular anti-smoking drug, Chantix has been linked to elevated risk of suicide.

This warning comes months after the FDA first expressed concern over the psychiatric effects of the drug. Chantix helps people quit smoking by stimulating the effects of nicotine in the brain.

At the same time it is making real nicotine less effective. As early as November 2007, the FDA warned that many people were experiencing changes in emotions and behavior, including depression and suicidal thoughts, within weeks or even days of starting the drug.

By February, the agency had strenghted it's message saying, "it appears increasingly likely that there may be an association between Chantix and serious neuropsychiatric symptoms"

At least 40 cases of suicide and another 400 attempted suicides have been reported among those taking Chantix. In February, the FDA asked Chantix manufacturer Pfizer to make warnings about suicidal and other pspychiatric side effects more prominent of the drug's label.

As I mentioned earlier in this article, the best waya to quit smoking is by doing it "cold turkey". You should not experience any withdrawal problems if you have seriously decided you want to quit. I didn't.

It's all in the mind and if you program it right you should never have a problem to quit smoking. It's no different than deciding to live a healthier life and doing whatever is necessary to make that happen. Try it, it works.

To your good health,

Sonny Julius

Sonnyj@TheSunnySenior.com

www.AHealthyLifeForSure.com

The information provided in this guide and on this site is neither intended, nor should it be taken, as medical advice. It is provided solely for informational purposes. The author and publisher is not a doctor. You should always consult your doctor for professional medical advice.