Health, smoking and doctor's advice
About the article
This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from October 1985.
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Believe it or not this description was given over three centuries ago by King James in 1604. Are we any further forward in our efforts to prevent people from smoking?
When we consider this point, we have to discuss the reasons why people smoke. These are very complicated, and cannot be simply explained by "nicotine-addiction".
Nicotine is one of the many chemicals in tobacco smoke. It is a powerful stimulant. In other words, smoking cigarettes and inhaling the fumes actually stimulates the brain. When people smoke, either at times of stress or when relaxing with friends in the evening, often with an alcoholic drink, they experience a pleasant or calming sensation associated with this stimulus. Since smoking is a socially acceptable habit (or used to be!) (in other words, the unlimited use of this drug is freely accepted by the public, in fact blatantly encouraged by advertisement in magazines, on the radio and on television) it is not surprising that the use of cigarettes has become so widespread.
The advertisements used to promote the sales, and therefore the use of cigarettes by the public, are far more subtle than any means we have of discouraging their use. Millions of dollars are spent employing advertisers, designers and salespeople who will promote the desire in people to smoke, against which we have the rather boring and cold, hard, "scaretactics" advice given by doctors who strongly recommend that you stop smoking. We see adverts of young bronzed people smiling and displaying their beautiful white teeth whilst playing on the beach, riding horses or sailing, and at the same time, all smoking a long cigarette. In other words, if you smoke, you will be associated with the young "in-crowd" beautiful, bronzed and attractive and thoroughly enjoying yourself.
How often do you see or read an advert from the other side? The man suffering from the pain of a duodenal ulcer, the woman who can hardly walk from breathlessness since she is a chronic bronchitic, both having smoked to an extent where their health is seriously damaged?
Or the young baby, both of whose parents smoke, who is taken to the doctor every month with a cold or cough and wheezing in his chest? Or worse still, the man dying of lung cancer, who refused to give up since "he had smoked since he was seventeen". It hadn't made any difference to him, he seemed to be as fit as anyone until we saw his chest x-ray.
The other very difficult problem that doctors have in trying to persuade their patients to give up smoking is that many people apart from enjoying the nicotine of cigarettes, use smoking as a "displacement activity". Displacement activities are small, seemingly useless movements made during moments of inner conflict or frustration.
Over in the corner of the airport departure lounge sits the "seasoned traveller" apparently calm and relaxed. But, closer inspection shows that he is smoking in a strange way. He is using the "multi-tap on the ashtray" technique. There is no ash on the cigarette that is tapping so consistently on the edge of the ashtray. Instead of doing nothing with his hands as he anxiously waits for his flight to be called, he is performing a "displacement activity".
That same ashtray will show signs of other ways people use cigarettes. The hardly-touched cigarette stamped out as if it were beingkilled,patterns drawn in the ash. Smoking by these people increases or decreases with their tension or anxiety. The worry-smokers are much more interested in cigarettes than just inhaling the smoke. They fumble for the packet and matches or lighter, take the cigarette out, light up, put out the flame of the match, put away the matches and cigarette packet, shift the ashtray, flick some imaginary ash from their clothes, and finally blow smoke thoughtfully into the air. Thus the smoker has an enormous advantage over the non-smoker at times of stress, he has something to do, and actually looks as though he is enjoying himself.
We would have to invent a pretty amusing gadget to replace the cigarette for him! It is against these patterns of behaviour in smoking that we have to battle. Most people now know the consequences of smoking, and the risk that people take in smoking cigarettes. We've heard them all before: lung cancer, heart disease, heart attacks, ulcers, poor circulation, poor teeth, chest infections - the list is endless.
Let's hope during last week's campaign against smoking that we weresuccessful in helping some of you to stop the habit! Box 1057. Grand Cayman
Welcome any medical questions on this article or any other problems. Please address your questions to Doctors Forum, P.O. Box 1365, Grand Cayman.
