Benefits of Qigong to Smokers

Smokers have tendency to be easily effected by viruses and sicknesses compared to non smokers. Cigarettes are filled with poison that goes into the lungs when you inhale. Coughing, dizziness, and burning of the eyes, nose, and throat are early signs that smoking is harming you. Smoking increases your health risks if you have diabetes, high blood pressure, or high blood cholesterol. The long-term problems of smoking cigarettes are the following:

Cancer: Smoking increases your chances of getting cancer. Cigarette smoking may play a role in developing many kinds of cancer. Lung cancer is the most common kind of cancer caused by smoking. A smoker is at greater risk of getting cancer of the lips, mouth, throat, or voice box. Smokers also have a higher risk of getting esophagus, stomach, kidney, pancreas, cervix, bladder, and skin cancer.

Heart and blood vessel disease:

If you already have heart or blood vessel problems and smoke, you are at even greater risk of having continued or worse health problems. The nicotine in the tobacco causes an increase in your heart rate and blood pressure. The arteries (blood vessels) in your arms and legs tighten and narrow because of the nicotine in cigarette smoke. Cigarette smoke increases blood clotting, and may damage the lining of your heart's arteries and other blood vessels.

Carbon monoxide is a harmful gas that gets into the blood and decreases oxygen going to the heart and the body. Cigarette smoke contains this gas. Hardening of the arteries happens more often in smokers than in nonsmokers. This may make it more likely for you to have a stroke (blood clot in your brain). The more cigarettes you smoke, the greater your risk of a heart attack.

Lung disease:

The younger you are when you start smoking, the greater your risk of getting lung diseases. Many smokers have a cough which is caused by the chemicals in smoke. These chemicals harm the cilia (tiny hairs) that line the lungs and help remove dirt and waste products. Depending upon how much you smoke, your lungs become gray and "dirty" (they look like charcoal). Healthy lungs are pink.

Chronic bronchitis is a serious lung infection which is often caused by smoking. Emphysema is a long-term lung disease that may be caused by smoking cigarettes. Cigarette smoking also makes asthma worse. You are at a higher risk of getting colds, pneumonia, and other lung infections if you smoke.

Gastrointestinal disease: Cigarette smoking increases the amount of acid that is made by your stomach, and may cause a peptic ulcer. A peptic ulcer is an open sore in the stomach or duodenum (part of the intestine). You may also get gastroesophageal reflux from smoking. This is when you have a backflow of stomach acid into your esophagus (food tube).

There are many other negative impact of smoking and having said all these you still love to smoke then you might need to consider of practising qigong to balance your health.

Please refer to the previous post (Healing meditation) on how to rejuvenate your body, mind and soul.