Smokers Know the Dangers, but Continue to Light up… Why?

The dangers of smoking are no secret. Haunting television commercials show the fatal consequences of long-term cigarette addiction and even the cigarette packs themselves are plastered with dire warnings from the surgeon general. If you have smoked for any amount of time, or even if you haven’t, you are probably intimately familiar with the dangers.

But despite all the TV commercials, all the surgeon general’s warnings, all the new regulations and all the exorbitant cigarette taxes, smoking remains a very popular pastime. Not only is it popular, but research seems to suggest that all of the public awareness efforts have done very little to remedy the problem in recent years. The CDC reports that in 2010, 19.3 percent of Americans smoked. That’s about 45.3 million people. In 2005, the number was 20.9 percent.

So why, despite the billions of dollars invested in anti-smoking efforts, does this dangerous habit persist? If you’re among the 45 million smokers in America, or even outside America, you surely had your own unique reasons for starting. Maybe your parents smoked, maybe you wanted to fit in with a particular group of friends, or maybe you just tried it and found it to be a satisfying form of stress release.

People have many reasons for starting, but most people continue for the same primary reason: addiction. Cigarette addiction is one of the most brutal, relentless dependencies around. When deprived of cigarettes, people can experience an array of withdrawal symptoms, like intense tobacco cravings, extreme irritability, interrupted sleep and loss of focus. Maybe you’ve tried dozens of times to quit, with little to no success.

But it’s easy to write off the problem simply as “addiction.” In life, the truth is often more complicated than the buzz words that we throw around. Aside from addiction, it’s important to note that there’s a lifestyle aspect to smoking. If everyone in your home, your workplace or even your bowling league enjoys heading outside for the occasional cigarette, that socially-unifying component can make quitting extremely difficult.

Again, you don’t need to be briefed on the statistics of how over 400,000 people die each year from cigarette smoke, or how the smoke damages your lungs, blood vessels and cells. You know all about lung cancer, emphysema and the dangers of secondhand smoke. But as previously illustrated, there are a lot of complexities to quitting. How can someone satisfy the social aspects of smoking and manage the addiction on their own terms without wasting thousands of dollars a year on name-brand cancer sticks?

Electronic cigarettes have become very popular in recent years, because they provide a worthwhile alternative for many longtime smokers. They look like real cigarettes, and they provide the same soothing sensations, but they aren’t actually cigarettes at all. They are small mechanical devices that release water vapor, which looks like smoke but contains none of the associated toxins.

Like traditional cigarettes, e-cigs allow you to satisfy your nicotine cravings, but unlike traditional cigarettes, many e-cigs—reusable types, in particular—allow you to choose the amount of nicotine that enters your system. So you can satisfy your nicotine cravings without all of the other poisons commonly associated with cigarettes, or you can gradually wean yourself off the drug altogether.

Will “vaping” ultimately replace smoking as America’s favorite social pastime? The idea may not be as far-fetched as you think. Traditional smoking is becoming downright impossible in some places. Throughout the country and beyond, legislators continue to raise cigarette taxes to record levels, and more and more cities and states are enacting ordinances that prohibit smoking in bars, restaurants, parks and even apartments. Electronic cigarettes emit no actual smoke, so they can be a lifesaver for disenfranchised smokers tired of finding “No Smoking” signs everywhere they turn.

If you’re curious about electronic cigarettes, or would like to try one for yourself, check out AmericaneLiquidStore.com. There you can learn more about the finer points of smokeless cigarettes and even purchase a kit for yourself. Find a variety of flavors, style and accessories to fit with your unique lifestyle. You may never want to light up another traditional cigarette again.

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