Switching to Electronic Cigarettes Is Good For Your Brain

I was a pack-a-day smoker for nearly 20 years. As a kid I would watch my dad smoke while doing just about everything. Whether it was a playing cards, doing yard work, or watching TV; the coolest person in my world always had a cigarette dangling from his lips. Before I picked up my first cigarette I knew I would love it. I remember it like it was yesterday. I snuck a cigarette out of my dad’s pack and went behind the garage. I remember putting the cigarette to my lips and lighting up. I took a drag, inhaled the smoke into my lungs and began violently coughing. Rational thinking and common sense should have taken charge and told me to never try smoking tobacco again, but it didn’t. I finished that cigarette and many, many more since. By conservative estimates I have finished well over 150,000 of them. I purposely inhaled something I knew was dangerous and did it over 150,000 times. What was I thinking? I knew it could cause cancer and heart disease and now I find out I could have been rotting my brain as well.

The BBC recently conducted a study of more than 8,800 people over the age of 50 and a correlation between smoking and damage to the memory, learning, and reasoning in the brain was found. Decreased brain function comes natural with aging but this study suggests smoking accelerates it.

I tried to quit smoking several times. I just couldn’t do it. I tried to wean myself off of them. When that didn’t work I tried to quit cold turkey. I also tried gum, patches, therapy and picking up new hobbies. All of these efforts were futile and I ended up back on tobacco within days. One day, while walking through the mall a man who was selling electronic cigarettes approached me. After a quick demonstration and sampling I was sold. I realized I should stop trying to quit and I should just switch to electronic cigarettes.

E cigarettes are an alternative to tobacco. They look like traditional cigarettes but that is where the comparisons end. They deliver nicotine via water vapor and do not contain any of the dangers of tobacco. They come in a variety of flavors and varying nicotine strengths. There is no fire, ash, tar, or second-hand smoke. Also, an e cig smoker will not smell like an ashtray nor will their fingers and/or teeth be stained.

My family and doctor could not be happier with my switch. I no longer cough, nor do I need 10 minutes to clear my throat every morning. Food tastes better, and I am no longer winded when walking up a flight of stairs. Best of all, I am no longer damaging my brain.

The day I discovered e cigs was one of the best days of my life. I only wish I found them sooner.
post by Evan