Quit cold turkey seven years ago. One of the best decisions I have ever made. My hubs and I calculated what I have saved in dollars at the current price of cigs and it was over twenty thousand dollars (not to mention the health problems I may have avoided). Now I honestly don't know why I EVER smoked. - 9/1/2011   11:53:47 AM

When my nephew and his wife had a baby, they practiced going outside to smoke. While I commended them on at least this much, I couldn't figure out why they didn't realize the smoke in their hair and clothes would be detrimental. I don't think smokers realize how much they stink.
My father quit smoking when I was a baby because he linked it to making me sick. 50 years later he told us he still craved a cigarette. Not ever smoking seems to be the right way to go for everyone. - 6/16/2011   11:41:04 AM

I believe this could be possible. How economical it would be to ditch everything U owned when U quit may be another matter entirely. Its not always possible to just "wash" or "paint" it away if this is true. What I can tell you, that I'm pissed no Dr, Cigarette Manufacture or Cancer Society will tell U is- once you've ever smoked and no matter that you've chosen to quit- your number is up in the air as to what the actual outcome will be. Later in life you can still get Cancer and all the other Respiratory, Heart, and damages smoking entails. And the majority of it is NOT remedied when U quit, curable, or reversible. The best prevention is to never have smoked or been near someone who smokes at all. So the main question we should all be asking? WHY hasn't the FDA pulled Cigarettes from the market all together? Its too dangerous to allow anyone to light that 1st Cigarette and yet they still do nothing. - 3/11/2011   9:43:35 AM

I'm a little surprised some people think this article isn't accurate. My sister's husband smokes whereas no one has ever smoked in this house. My sister does not smoke but I can always smell it on her. We once borrowed a humidifier from her but when we took the water reservoir lid off it smelled so badly of smoke we put it out in the garage and returned it to her unused. It was the type where air bubbles through the water and, obviously, their smoke-filled air had bubbled through the water and left a residue on the plastic of the humidifier. It was totally revolting.

Check out this video on YouTube about cigarette smoke:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DbF
Bu_I_lA

You think that doesn't settle on items in your home? Someone who smokes 25 cigarettes a day can create that much tar in sixteen days. Yes, some will be in their lungs (ew!) but some will be in any atmosphere you share with them and particles will deposit on items wherever they smoke.

I hate taking my kid to my sister's home. I worry sick about their new grandbaby. Bad stuff. - 8/11/2010   4:34:05 PM

i'm a swinger.................a smoke swinger silly! :) i can swing to being a non-smoker for a good long time, like months, even yrs.......than i swing back into being a regular smoker for days, even weeks at a time.....ironically, i can just quit w/o outside resources, just my brain deciding to do so, and not miss it, really.....i never like the idea of how it can harm not just me, but others too, so that's an incentive to quit for sure....somehow, justification comes in when u feel, if others aren't around, it won't at least affect anyone but me....but this article sure does make me think.......and then i think i should love myself enough to quit Forever knowing all i know already......hmm...definitely something to ponder........thanks - 8/7/2010   10:52:50 AM

This is a complete load of crap. Toxins from autos, building materials, etc. all contribute to the environment. Frankly I think the greatest threat to our current health is the methane gas emanating from butts and mouths of todays politically/commercially funded science community. But then again- don't smoke! - 8/4/2010   1:31:43 PM

Okay- I get that I'm a little self-destructive sometimes... When I was 16 I was dating a boy that I had lost interest in... right before I broke up with him, my dad said I had to break up with him - so I didn't - even tho' I wanted to.

So I quit smoking for a year - then they started those stupid "quit smoking" commericals (the one's with the vomit etc) and I was so mad that they would insult my intellignnce that I started smoking again. Seriously, the more you tell me I HAVE to do something, the less I'm likely to... the more you cram something at me... the more I will rebel.

I quit again a month ago. Because I wanted to... so stop trying to scare everyone into doing what you want them to do and let them do it.
- 8/4/2010   11:27:09 AM

I quit smoking in 2006 after smoking for thirty years. I never thought I'd be free of the weed but three days obsessively reading every bit of the website whyquit.com and I was ready to try. Their main mantra - One Day at a Time, Worry About Tomorrow Tomorrow, One Day at a Time, No Nicotine Today, was my morning lifeline. I only had to get through one day. If I managed that I could try another day and so on, and it totally worked!

Whyquit.com also helped me identify my inner triggers, when I would be most likely to crave a cigarette, and taught me how to be calm for those few minutes until the craving went away, and as each trigger was passed the cravings lessened until eventually they stopped altogether. Now I rarely get a craving. The last time was before Christmas when we were stranded at the supermarket and had to wait an hour for a taxi. It was the first time since I quit that I'd had to do that, so there was a minute of craving when a staff member came out for a cigarette, and I actually laughed when I realised what was going on because I hadn't had a craving for over a year before that. LOL

I can't praise Whyquit.com highly enough. If anyone reads my comment here and decides to give Whyquit a try, they are more than welcome to contact me via sparkmail or my sparkpage and I'll offer any support I can give. - 8/4/2010   5:57:08 AM

Wow. This is nuts! And totally makes sense too... glad I quit. I used www.quitnet.com . it was super helpful and I highly recommend it! I bet SparkPeople forums arre great too!

Good luck everyone! - 8/3/2010   6:34:18 PM

This really upsets me. My mom has been smoking all my life. Knowing that the left over residue can also affect myself and my family scares me. We wear certain clothes to her house so when we get home we stripped them off and throw them in the wash. From my hair to my clothes, sometimes my skin I feel like someone painted me with it.
Year after she says she will quit or she tried something and she will have to try another thing.
She also needs to lose weight so she can have more energy.
She gets annoyed if I go yuck. She will go outside or think she is far enough away.
It is very frustrating. Our visits are short and not as much.
Thanks for the article... - 7/12/2010   11:35:24 AM

I quit smoking a few months ago with the support of a Spark team. I figured there was no point in exercising and getting fit while committing suicide! - 7/8/2010   8:58:56 AM

I am 6 months free of smoking!! It was made much easier for me once NC banned smoking indoors. It looks like that ban also eliminated 3rd hand smoke!! - 7/7/2010   1:30:18 PM

Just one thing, at least when most people overeat, they don't stink all over their bodies from the food, and standing next to them, people can still breathe and not cough, choke, and their asthma gets worse. I remember a couple at work, that bought nice outfits of all leather, and you couldn't smell the leather at all due to the ciggie stink on them!!! Only several years later, after the couple had quit smoking, did they notice and tossed the outfits out because they couldn't be cleaned up properly. The stink goes inside the wall boards, carpets and carpet pads, upholstery, etc. Think of what it does to the lungs. Yet it's very hard to quit, maybe one day there will be some laser thing they can do to our brains to stop addictions, who knows?? - 4/3/2010   10:04:02 PM

Why is it that people complain so much about smokers? They have an addiction problem to tobacco while nearly everyone here on SparkPeople has an addiction to food. They use it to deal with their problems just like we use food to deal with ours. We just have to wake up one day and realize what we're doing, smoking or eating, is damaging our health and those around us that we love.

And yes of course I'm a former smoker. I was addicted to smoking and eating because that's how I dealt with stress, depression, and low self esteem/worth. Now I use exercise to do that. If you know someone who smokes, don't tell them how horrible they are for doing it because they'll only want a cigarette even more. Help them work through the addiction just like we help each other on SparkPeople to eat better and exercise better! - 3/6/2010   7:34:35 AM

I'm sure some of us have heard this before..but, I'll say it again...I've never smoked, hated the smell of it; hated the smell of the people who did/do smoke; hated the 'having to go to the smoking side of the restaurant', etc. to 'accommodate' the smoker, hated it in my house, at work, etc....breathing in that horrid smoke; wondering if it was shortening my life as well. Ok..so, I've said enough about that..just glad I didn't have to quit smoking; I feel sad for those who have a tough time with it; I can sort of appreciate that it's addictive..but, let's think about this for a moment..if ones who have been addicted to heroine and other such addictive drugs...can and did quit....smoking is a mere drop in the bucket (or drop in the grave) not to be able to quit..besides..look at all the money you'll save, all the friends you might gain back who were offended by second-hand smoke, and looking forward to a happier, healthier lifestyle!! - 3/1/2010   7:30:13 PM

I was a 30 yr smoker. I quit once for 2 yrs, started again. Quit 10 yrs. ago now and would never go back. I can't stand the smell now. If I'm around smoke it effects my lungs coughing up residue for two days afterward. It was hard and I feel for anyone going through it. My kids ask me to quit when they were younger and I quit on mothers day for them. If the desire is there and you want to bad enough you can do it. Stopping was horrible, headaches, munchies, gained 35 lbs. Have finally lost that again with Sparks support. If you haven't quit tell yourself, nothing is going to control you, that destroys everyone around you. You smell and don't realize it, your clothes, breath the whole works. Have faith and you can quit, and you really do breathe better. They say it can cause ear aches and infection in children. My daughter had ear aches and infections all the time. When I quit she never had another one, so I believe it is true. - 3/1/2010   7:31:13 AM

I use to be a smoker but I quit a few years ago and it the best thing I did for myself. - 2/28/2010   11:49:15 PM

I've never smoked, but my husband use to smoke pretty heavily. He quit about 10 years ago. We've discovered though that to go to a restaurant or a bar where smoking is still allowed, that we just can't stand it anymore. We've always been turned off by the smoke in the air, but our clothes when we return home are the absolute worst!!! Now I know why I have to wash them afterwards - I guess it's not just the smell! - 2/28/2010   9:15:59 PM

I am a former smoker. I feel the pain of those who still have an addiction to nicotene. After several failed attempts to rid myself of my nicotene dependency I still would not give up. First: you must realize that you have an addiction. Second :you must have the desire to really stop smoking. Third: you must make a commitment to beat your addiction. Fourth: throw your cigarettes away and vow never to pick up another cigarette in your life. Find whatever methods to assist you in your quest. Do research online to know extacly what changes your body will go through during your withdraw process. Talk about quitting to other people. You will be suprised to learn how many people are former smokers. Offten times those former smokers become your support group. By the way I used the patch to help me quit. Many health insurance companies will pay for your aids such as the patch. Reseach to realize the life long benifits to your health you will experience once you have quit smoking. Don't worry about any weight gain. You can deal with that later. Just take one day at a time to reach your goal. Good luck - 2/5/2010   5:35:27 PM

My brother had a terminal illness and also smoked. It was the only pleasure he had left in is final months. I lived with him to look after him and I hated the way the house reeked. One of my sisters was his POA and I said one day that I really wish he didn't smoke, and she replied why deny him. It isn't going to kill him. No, but it could kill me.

20 years later I am a transit user and am often assaulted by the second hand smoke the clings like a haze around fellow travellers who smoke. On day a passenger took his last puff just seconds before he boarded and was exhaling on the bus. The driver told him if he ever did that again, he would ban him from his bus as he did not appreciate having that smoke blown in his face.

I am asthmatic and have a very difficult time with perfume and second hand smoke. Knowing about Third Hand Smoke would explain why I still have breathing problems even when the room appears to be smoke free. - 10/31/2009   10:28:40 AM

There is no end to the bad things that cigarettes cause... - 10/10/2009   12:42:05 AM

I think if someone who smokes is stupid enough to do so, and doesn't care about their own health, why would they care about harming nonsmokers' health? It's ridiculous, I can't see how they would care.. So information like this isn't really going to do anything. No smoker can give the excuse they don't know how bad it is, because EVERYONE knows what smoking does. - 8/19/2009   1:57:43 AM

I smoked 2 packs a day for 38 years. I read this book - "The Easy Way to Stop Smoking" by Allen Carr ( http://www.allencarr.com ), on Sunday, March 24, 2008 and became a happy non-smoker as of Monday, March 25, 2008. I hated smoking but thought I was a hopeless addict - as smokers are lead to believe. But, if you really want to quit I highly recommend giving this book a try. It worked for me and a lot of other people too. The only advice I have is don't have a lot of cigarettes around when you read this because you will probably want to quit when you are done. It doesn't use any scare tactics but it does give the smoker a whole new perspective. I actually feel like I never smoked - not health wise because I do have COPD - but in my mind - which is where it really counts. Hey, for about the cost of a couple packs of smokes (or one pack if you live in New York) it is well worth it. Good Luck. - 8/18/2009   1:56:14 PM

I quit smoking cold turkey
nearly five years ago
...for my 51st birthday
and it has shown me that there's
nothing in this whole world that
I can't accomplish :O) - 8/17/2009   8:14:38 AM

My hubby and I quit smoking 3 1/2 years ago. We are so pleased to be free from the addiction and wish every smoker to have this feeling too. It is not easy to quit, but it can be done as you can see by these comments. I used a website full of wonderful people who are at differing stages of quits. The site is quitnet.com. Without the wonderful people on quitnet, I am not sure I would have had the strength to have made it to freedom from nicotine. Thank you quitnet buddies. - 8/14/2009   5:15:22 PM

I am a former smoker, and I am delighted that I have quit - it has been three years. Smoking is unquestionably a cruel addiction, a dreadful habit etc. We cannot do enough to prevent youngsters from taking up the habit. However, I do not like the ever-more prevalent feeling that there is a witch hunt against smokers themselves, as opposed to the habit. And I, for one, do not buy the above piece about third-hand smoke. There will have to be some civilized agreements to agree to disagree on this. No one knows better how terrible smoking is than those who have quit the habit. - 8/14/2009   11:25:43 AM

I have second hand smoking disease, Asthma, thanks to all the years my dad smoked in the house, and car. Back then NO one knew how bad that was. I was always sick as a kid. NEVER had a year that I had perfect attendance at school. I KNOW it was the smoking . My ex tried to take it up, and I wouldn't let him....am so thankful I stood my ground. Even 38 years ago, we still did not know the side effects on those who did NOT smoke. Both my kids grew up in a CLEAN air environment, and earned trophies in school for perfect attendance. I was very proud of that.

BTW, though Dad smoked 39 years. stopped at 50...did NOT die from it, died a natural death from old age....so it DOES pay to STOP!!!! - 8/12/2009   4:57:10 AM

I really wish smoking in public places was more limited. I've heard smokers complain about non-smokers coughing around them, but honestly, if you blow cigarette smoke into the air and a fair amount of it ends up in my lungs, I cough! It makes me cough for about 15 mins depending on how much I inadvertently inhale and it make my tongue itch for hours. If you're in a crowd, please take a moment before lighting up to make sure you give your fellow people enough space so they don't also have to smoke your cigarette. 8-10 feet will do. : ) - 8/11/2009   11:17:32 PM

I used to smoke.I started when I was 14 years old. I look back at how I used to get all done up and add perfume or body spray -who was I kidding! Now that I dont smoke I can smell cigarette smoke on my husbands skin even. And now I realize that NO AMOUNT of perfume or body spray covers up that stale cigarette smell. Yuk! Its funny to look back on actually, but only because I dont smoke anymore. I quit Nov. 7th, 2008. The only thing that motivated me to quit was thinking that "maybe" God didnt like it. Even though you wont find cigareetes in the bible I had this feeling that I shouldnt be doing it. I also quit doing drugs with Gods help. I called 1-800-NOBUTTS, they are totally supportive and they give you tips to quit smoking too. They can also give you a voucher for the gum, but it has to match your health insurance (it didnt match mine). You can buy them without a prescription in places, including Riteaid and safeway even.Probably all kinds of stores.I bought some.The voucher got me lookig at the pharmacy though and Riteaid sells it very cheap if you buy the generic. I am on a fixed income so if I can afford to quit with it anyone can. Our houshold makes less than $1,000 a month! Besides cigarettes are running $6 a pack and more! I think its possible to shell out $24 or whatever for 100 peices of gum. I dont remeber it costing much more. God really helped me because I was able to quit in less time than the gum insert suggested. I used it to ween myself off, and if you follow the tips like 1800NOBUTTS gives then using the gum THE RIGHT WAY makes it simple to quit...Peace in Christ! - 7/30/2009   5:22:35 PM

I wish My MIL would stop smoking, it stinks.. all my clothes smell and she just tell sus to SHut Up when we ask her to smoke outside. - 7/29/2009   4:50:01 PM

25 years ago I was watching the Phil Donahue Show. The show's topic was chemical castration of convicted rapists. If the rapist agreed to the procedure/process they would be released from prison. Of course the audience went nuts, their shouts included..."why in the world would you ever consider this, they are evil people, they take what they want with no regard to another person's life. They should be locked up for life"! One of the panelist came back with "and what are we to do with the pregnant woman who smokes? She has no regard for the life of her unborn child. The child can't even fight back". I was 7 1/2 months pregnant and smoking a cigarette at the time the statement was made. I immediately put the cigarette out and the thought that I was put in the same class as a rapist was the turning point for me to NEVER smoke again!

When I smell smokers I often share the story....it was the statement I needed to quit and I hope it helps someone else. - 7/26/2009   5:27:31 PM

My BF smokes in the house, and it really affects my asthma and allergies, but it is his crutch & I don't know how to tell him I want him to quit without sounding naggy....

But, I will definately share this article with him - he needs to know that his decision doesn't just affect him.

THANX - 7/18/2009   3:40:09 AM

I meant to say, "I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to quit smoking." (Not "anyone who wants smoking". That makes absolutely no sense at all.) - 6/5/2009   10:32:10 AM

I successfully quit smoking two years ago - and congrats to all of you other ex-smokers out there! I quit using a book called "The Easy Way to Quit Smoking" and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants smoking. Before you spend a whole bunch on $$$ on patches, pills and gum, check this book out - it has made me incredibly happy as a non-smoker. If you quit using other methods, you stil might find this book useful. It truly changed my life. - 6/5/2009   10:30:46 AM

I was a casual smoker for a number of years and during that time met my husband. I quit 12 years ago but he has not. He does not smoke in our house or in our vehicle but I can still always smell it, just from him being in the space. I believe in the negative health effects of '3rd hand smoke' - I know how I feel just smelling it on him - but I don't believe that he will believe it or that it will make a difference to him. Until an addict is ready to quit, they can justify anything - I see this every day... Just an FYI, where I live (Ontario, Canada) it is now illegal to smoke in a vehicle with children present. I am thrilled with this law and hope that other areas adopt it as well. - 5/7/2009   1:55:49 PM

I don't beleive the stats anymore. Take a good look at the chemicals in your public drinking water...many of the same chemicals are found there as well. They don't tell you that the chemicals listed here are often found in the filter, which you don't smoke and that most of them are in trace amounts that wouldn't be toxic unless you smoked for 70 years at a heavy rate.

I beleive that the stats are become SO slanted they are starting to lose credibility. - 5/4/2009   11:56:11 AM

I really don't believe this...I mean I can get that secondhand smoke can cause some damage...but this is kind of ridiculous. If "third-hand" smoke was so bad, they would have found out years ago. Not buying this one people, sorry - 5/3/2009   8:49:05 PM

I quit smoking 12 years ago. I was motivated to quit but I needed to change my habits/behaviours in order to make it successful so I joined a learn to run club. We met 3 times a week. We started at 30 seconds of running and 4 and a half minutes of walking (That 30 seconds almost killed me!) Over the next 13 weeks we graduated to running a 10 km race (Vancouver Sun Run). It was a major life achievement for me. I am still proud of myself :) I continued running at various events...the comaraderie amoung runners & walkers is very motivating. I think it's great to want to quit smoking but if you don't change your behaviours (who you hang around with, situations that invite smoking - bars, etc..,) you're chances of success will be greatly reduced. It can be done. It wasn't easy, I won't lie. I had to do a lot of self-talk but, trust me, if I can do it, so can you (Sorry for the cliche).
Also remember, smoking is a bad habit/addiction that happens to good people. It is an addition fed by the tobacco companies who purposely put addictive additives into the tobacco to keep you addicted. They are the bad people. Did you know that ammonia is added to cigarettes to "free-base" the nicotine to your brain. So within 7 seconds of taking that first drag you get that "Ahh" affect as the nicotine hits the receptors in your brain - immediately calming you down. That's the effect smokers crave the most. In the meantime, 4000 chemical compounds are entering your system causing havic on your health. Tobacco companies are smart - they know how to keep you addicted so you will buy their products and keep them rich. Why are there no government regulations? Money, pure and simple. Tobacco companies create a revenue of money that makes politicians turn a blind eye.
So you decide, do you want to keep your health, be happy, see your grandchildren grow up or do you want to be dupped by the tobacco giants and keep giving them your hard earned cash so they can slowly kill you?
I refused to be taken advantage of and so can you. I know you can do it too. :)
Good luck! - 5/3/2009   2:13:33 PM

i hated that my grandma smoked when i was a kid. i picked it up when i was 20-- now i'm 23 and I quit back in september. i feel great. i was ashamed of smoking and embarrassed of the smell it left. i really wish my best friends would quit. - 5/3/2009   7:07:59 AM

I quit smoking 5 weeks ago. I could not do it cold turkey and had to use the patch. But I feel so much better with more energy and no coughing or weezing. That is also the reason I joined this site is so I could also loose weight. The first week I gained 10 lbs because all I wanted to do was eat. So I started working out and eating low fat snacks. Now I have lost 25 lbs and feel 100 times better about myself. - 5/2/2009   5:34:14 PM

I definitely agree with this article, I have never smoked and none of my family members have ever smoked. I have asthma, but when I was in high school it was so mild that sometimes I would lose my inhaler for months at a time because I didn't need it!! Then I moved in with my ex who was a smoker. He never smoked inside our house, but for some reason while living with him my need for my inhaler went WAY up. It was to a point where I would wake up at night because I couldn't breathe, take my inhaler, then not be able to get back to sleep because it raises your heart rate. Also, my allergies got much worse. I ended up having to take a daily maintenance inhaler and a daily allergy pill during the time I was with him. Now you could said it was due to other factors, yes I was living in a different city, yes I was less active. The main proof to me is that now that we aren't together and I live with my sister (a non-smoker) I haven't had to use my maintenance inhaler at all and I only have to take Allegra during the outdoor allergy months. Main point is, if you can smell it it's there. Smells come from small particles of a substance being inhaled and "tasted" by taste buds at the back of your tongue. I don't think anyone would want to lick the inside of a cigarette but smelling smoke is pretty much the same thing!! - 4/30/2009   3:51:12 PM

I just tried to print this article and it didn't work. All I got was the comments. I have had asthma all of my 65 years. Both of my parents smoked. But no one could figure out where my asthma came from because no other family member had it. Four years ago my father died of COPD. Now I find out my mother has COPD. My sister continues to smoke even after being told she has COPD. I wanted the article because I am going to visit my sister and I thought maybe if she heard about the third hand smoke she might consider stopping. She lives with her daughter and three grandchildren one of whom has asthma. - 4/29/2009   4:55:14 PM

I have smoked most of my adult life and so has my husband. Last month he had a heart attack and his cardiologist said 1st and foremost- no more smoking! I am getting ready to start the chantrix smoking cessation plan as soon as I get the prescription from my doctor(hopefully today). My husband has all but quit(in the last month I have seen him smoke about 4 times)but he chews skoal. If the chantrix works for me I am going to get him on it so he will give up chewing as well. I have cut my smoking in half and feel really good about it. This will be hard but I can do this.
I also not be one of the exsmokers that are always nagging smokers or trying to inflict my opinions on them. It has to come from them for them to quit. Wish me luck!
Cyndi - 4/27/2009   1:53:30 PM

I don't smoke and I don't believe anything smokers hear will change their mind. Unfortunately, non smokers have to suffer too because of that. - 4/26/2009   8:56:52 PM

I smoked for 10 years, and managed to quit cold turkey 15 years ago. At one point I was up to 3 packs a day, and by the time I quit I was down to 1/2 pack a day. Smoking is definitely for selfish people!!!!

I have friends who still smoke, and I simply don't hang around them. I didn't like the smell when I was smoking...I definitely don't like it now. They don't understand that I don't wan t to choke to death in the same car while they're puffing away. People who do this to their children should be considered for child endangerment. I don't care if I offend anyone...smoking is offensive.

I argued with my mom that most people in our family die from heart issues. She says there was a lot of cancer. The only people in our family that died from cancer either smoked 3 packs a day (literally) or lived with a 3 pack a day smoker.

The best thing I ever did was quit. It took years for me to be able to run without suffocating after four steps. I'm not the best runner (I hate it), but I manage to do 10 minute sets on the treadmill in between recovery sets of steady walking. I also ride my bike 8-10 miles a day now. Do that when you can't breathe!! I look and feel so much better now; it's awesome.

2 reasons to quit smoking
vanity: smoking will eventually make you look older than you are. It does damage to
your skin, and especially promotes wrinkles around the mouth from sucking on
the cigarette.
taste: you kill taste buds when you smoke. After quitting the taste does come back
and food is so much more enjoyable, especially when it doesn't have to be
drown in seasoning just to get to taste something!!!

My state banned smoking from public establishments last year. I love it! It's so nice to be able to go out and enjoy a meal without smoke wafting over my food (let's face it, smoking sections weren't exactly separated from non-smoking); and being able to go out and enjoy a live band without having to come home smelling like an ashtray. Smokers can whine all they want to; it's their choice to smoke. I don't believe in forcing my religion on someone (in fact that's illegal!!), so they shouldn't be allowed to force their choice on me. Furthermore, the rest of us shouldn't have to cover their healthcare cost with our tax dollars. People who are overweight are treated worse than smokers. At least my weight doesn't give someone else a life threatening disease.

Anyone who doesn't think 3rd hand smoke is toxic, think of this: When you are in a smokers house or car, what is in the film that is covering everything. If you wash the walls in a smokers house, there is a dingy yellow film coming off on the rags. That film is in the drapes, the furniture, on the dishes...YUCK!!!! What is in that film? Toxins such as arsenic, cyanide, etc....

I'm going to be harsh: for those of you who whine about how hard it is to quit smoking. LIFE is hard get over it. Quitting any habit is hard; I'm on SP because of a food habit. You have to look at yourself everyday and say I"M THE ONE IN CONTROL HERE!!! - 4/26/2009   11:34:40 AM

I quit cold turkey one and a half months ago. I can do so much more physically. And I can breathe so much better!! I never want to start that again. - 4/23/2009   4:11:16 PM

Our grown daughter (who smokes) and our 7 yr old granddaughter live with us. We've been trying to get her to quit for years and have never let her smoke in the house. She goes outside to smoke but she also smokes when her daughter is in her car.

I grew up with 2 parents that smoked for over 50 yrs! (I have never tried.) After gagging whenever our daughter comes in the house- I keep wondering about how I must have smelled to my friends for all those years. I know one of the reasons I don't get close to my daughter very often is the smoke smell, and it breaks my heart to think this is an accepted smell to my granddaughter. Her other grandmother smokes too, but luckily she doesn't see her that often.

She is the one who showed me, and got me excited about your site to begin with. I just showed her this article. I hope she finally listens. - 4/21/2009   1:44:46 PM

I have been smoke free for one month. - 4/21/2009   11:43:36 AM

i had a doctor tell me that i must stop smoking ... not my choice. Now that i have stopped, i realize all the terrible things i was suffering from because of smoking. I was allergic to the stuff in the cigarettes and my eyes were always sore, and red. A few other things also. Pretty disgusting and sad. - 4/5/2009   9:19:15 PM

I literally stopped smoking. I thought hey I could just finish that last pack...but I lost it haha. So technically the last cigarette I had was 2 hours before I graduated from college. So I feel that I just left that part of me there and moved on. I'm not saying it will be easy for some. I didn't have many issues quitting but I had only been smoking for 2 years (and from time to time for 4 years.-meaning when drunk or around certain friends). Just here to say good luck to those who chose to quit...I hear hypnotists are very successful. - 2/10/2009   2:10:36 AM