Smokers Are Likely To Face Serious Problems In Bone Healing After Surgery

A study was undertaken to evaluate the bone healing rates of smokers Vs non-smokers and it was found out that smokers took nearly 50 percent extra time to heal after surgery than those who didn’t smoke. However, during the study, it was also seen that the bones of some smokers couldn’t be healed.  

Now surgeons participating at the Annual Scientific Conference of the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons (ACFAS) this week are trying to find out ways to reduce the hazards confronted by smokers before as well as post surgery. The surgeons taking part in the conference are also trying to find ways to perk up the bone health of smokers.  

Laurence Rubin, a Richmond, Virginia foot and ankle surgeon and an active participant in the conference, states that smokers face maximum risks during and after surgery. He adds that there are specific ways through which the risk can be minimized and the Annual Scientific Conference, surgeons are discussing the finest procedures used for treatment.  

Apart from longer healing period, smokers who have undergone surgery, also face the risk of infection, blood clots and shattering wounds.  

Source: American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons; prnewswire.com

Adults Suffering From Mental Ailments Have Higher Rates of Smoking Addiction

 A new report released by the CDC and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that adults suffering from mental illness have 70% higher smoking rates. The report states that this is in comparison with adults without any mental illness.

 

The report revealed that around 36% of the 45.7 million US citizens afflicted with a specific type of mental illness are addicted to cigarette smoking in comparison to 21% adults who are not suffering from any mental disease.

 

According to the report, the rate of smoking addicted people suffering from mental illnesses is higher among young adults existing below the poverty line and young people with lower education levels. However, the report highlights that difference in smoking rates is seen across several US states.

 

The report, from the CDC and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), showed that 36% of the 45.7 million Americans with some type of mental illness are cigarette smokers, compared with only 21% of adults who do not have a mental illness.   

Tom Frieden, MD, MPH and the director of CDC, states that likewise other smokers, those smokers suffering from mental illnesses are eager to quit smoking and can definitely achieve that. He adds that quit smoking treatments indeed work and it is essential to make them available to people who are enthusiastic to trigger off smoking cessation.  

The study authors state that the findings of the report have several health-related conclusions. One of these is related to boosting up efforts to decrease the rate of smoking in the inhabitants.  

 

Source: webmd.com, Date: 8^th February 2013

 

Employers In Massachusetts May Exclude Smokers From The List Of Job Seekers

According to a latest story published in the “Business Monday”, employers from Massachusetts are getting increasingly anxious about healthcare expenditure and loss in productivity due to sick employees who are addicted to smoking. This has prompted the employers to consider measures such as ruling out smokers from the list of job applicants.

 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that addiction to smoking costs the US state of Massachusetts productivity loss worth $1.9 billion and medical expenditure of $3 billion on an annual basis. Hence, an employer may consider a smoking addicted individual to be an additional responsibly and exclude him from the list of job seekers.

 

Thomas Jones, the vice president of the employers resource group for the Associated Industries of Massachusetts, states that the possibility of debarring smokers from the list of job seekers has emerged as a hot topic of discussion in the business-seminar circle.  

So, addiction to cigarette smoking can be a huge disadvantage in the job market of Massachusetts.   

 

Source: masslive.com, Date: 6^th February 2013

Renowned Oncologist Says That Cancer-Care Providers Should Motivate Patients to Stop Smoking

Dr. Bill Evans, a former oncologist and the regional vice-president of Cancer Care Ontario, states that it should be the main concern of cancer-care providers to motivate patients to stop smoking. According to Dr. Bill Evans, the quit smoking advantages for cancer patients are not especially known among oncologists or other cancer-care providers functioning within the oncology community.  

Dr. Bill Evans is the chairperson of Cancer Care Ontario (CCO) board which is looking forward to introduce quit smoking programs at several regional cancer centres. According to him, the principal responsibility of an oncologist is to treat the cancer and not essentially the complete individual, his habits or cravings.  

To add on, Dr.Evans makes it apparent oncologists and others who are operating in cancer-related programs, should reckon that the best care for cancer patients involve integrating the management of tobacco into cancer treatments.  

Moreover, Dr. Bill Evans reveals that cancer patients, who stop smoking after being identified with the disease, are likely to gain a range of benefits. These include a decreased risk of complications related to the healing of wounds, pulmonary problems and infections resulting from surgery.   He adds that stop smoking also lowers a patient’s chances of developing another form of cancer.

 

Source: ottawacitizen.com, Date: 4^th February 2013

Woman from Blackburn Starts a New Quit Smoking Campaign

 Bobby-Jo Martin, a woman from Blackburn, is starting a new campaign to help smokers trigger off smoking cessation. She is 22 years old and is also a mother of two kids. According to her, she gained motivation to stop smoking when she became pregnant for the third time. Bobby-Jo Martin reveals that she quit smoking successfully and now wants to help others achieve that.  

 

The principal aim of this new stop smoking campaign is to tell existing smokers about real-life stories of people who got rid of smoking addiction and thus encourage them to kick the habit.  

Bobby-Jo Martin and her partner Sam Madden have become fully involved in the quit smoking campaign. This anti-smoking drive is to be launched throughout Lancashire very soon.  

The woman Bobby-Jo Martin adds that she didn’t want to continue smoking during pregnancy and inflict harm on her unborn child and two young kids. She tried to quit smoking earlier and this time, she and her partner Sam Madden quit smoking jointly.   

Source: lancashiretelegraph.co.uk, Date: 11^th February 2013

New Quit Smoking Clubs Are Helping Female Smokers In Bradford

 A line of new stop smoking clubs for women have started offering their services in Bradford. The clubs are known as `Time 4 Me’ clubs and they remains operational for a period of 12 weeks.

 

The clubs are offering services for free of cost and the club sessions will be organized in five children’s centres throughout Airedale and Bradford. These centres include the Rainbow Centre, at Braithwaite, Keighley, Parklands at Thorp Edge, the Gateway Centre at Ravenscliffe, Wyke and Bierley.

 

Female smokers can enrol in the clubs for learning relaxation procedures, having fun, getting to know new people and for quit smoking together. These clubs are especially targeted at women who are pregnant, planning to achieve pregnancy or those who have pre-school children.

 

The new quit smoking clubs are substituting the Primary Care Trusts in Bradford. 

 

Source: thetelegraphandargus.co.uk, Date: 9^th February 2013

 

Female Smokers Are Now More Likely To Die Than They Were In The 1960s

A new US-based study has discovered that women who smoke are now more prone to die than they had that risk in the 1060s. The survey included more than 2.2 million men and women who were aged 55 yrs and above. The study also incorporated data from 1959 till 2010.  

The study was undertaken by Dr Michael Thun from The American Cancer Society and his group of researchers. According to the researchers, the results have shown that if women continue to smoke like men, they will eventually die like men.  

 

During the 1960s, American women who took to smoking were thrice more prone to die due to lung cancer than those women who never started smoking. However, in between 2000-2010, this risk was enhanced by 26 times. The enhanced risk of female deaths due to smoking exceeds the advancements seen in the medicine industry that have lessened death rates during the last 50 years.  

 

In comparison to the 1960s, now women start smoking cigarettes very early in life and continue the habit for a longer period. This may be largely responsible for the impact of smoking addiction.  

 

Source: cancerresearchuk.org, Date: 24^th January 2013