Happy New Year to All!

2               No smoking.

SmokingSmoking is the leading cause of preventable death. There are more than a billion smokers in the world out of a total population of around 7 billion. It has been estimated that 50% of smokers will die prematurely from tobacco related illness, half in middle age (defined as 35 – 69 years of age) with an average loss of life expectancy of 20 – 25 years (8 years over all ages). The tobacco death clock hit 40 million for the decade (According to ASH, 14th World Conference on Tobacco Or Health 2009, and The Global Tobacco Epidemic 2008: WHO report). Whether we should blame the person or blame a possible “smoking gene” is debatable at this time. I tried cigarettes when I was nine with my classmates. But somehow, I never really liked it. It might be that I do not have the “smoking gene.” Neither my father nor my brother smoke cigarettes. One thing is clear: if you do not try it, even if you have a “smoking gene,” you might be fine. The better way might be “do not try it.” It’s unclear at this time whether smokers have the “smoking gene” or just that gene is functional in those person.