Using tobacco affects everyone

  • Published
  • By Dr. David Hey
  • Health and Wellness Center
GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  Airmen live, work, fight and die in service to our great nation. The work you do positively affects all Americans. That's something great. But some things Airmen do have negative effects on others, especially their families and friends. That's obviously not a good thing and something that requires everyone's attention.

Today, one in four Airmen uses tobacco products. Airmen who smoke or use smokeless tobacco decrease their physical performance and decrease overall personal and unit accomplishment. For every individual who uses tobacco, they miss approximately nine days per year on the job. That means someone else will be called on to cover that person's responsibility for the day and that ends up costing all of us lots of money. If you think for a moment, a completely tobacco-free active duty force could save as much as $107 million annually, improve our quality of life and enhance mission effectiveness (Lt. Gen. James Roudebush, memorandum, 11/6/07). Now, that is something we all should be shooting for!

We all know that tobacco can be disabling and deadly. Even so, tobacco is a legal product that can be purchased at the age of 18 in nearly every state (Alabama, Alaska, New Jersey, Utah and parts of New York have a minimum age of 19). But the right to smoke has some restrictions. Why? Because the deadly byproducts of smoking tobacco affect not only the smoker, but also other people: friends, family and loved ones.

In 2006, the U.S. Surgeon General published a full report, "The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke." Involuntary exposure to tobacco smoke is often called "secondhand smoke."

In this document, the Surgeon General reports these negative effects:

1. Secondhand smoke causes premature death and disease in children and in adults who do not smoke.
2. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are at an increased risk for sudden infant death syndrome, acute respiratory infections, ear problems and more severe asthma. Smoking by parents causes respiratory symptoms and slows lung growth in their children.
3. Exposure of adults to secondhand smoke has immediate adverse effects on the cardiovascular system and causes coronary heart disease and lung cancer.

The American Lung Association reports that secondhand smoke causes approximately 3,400 lung cancer deaths and 46,000 heart disease deaths in adult nonsmokers in the United States each year. Yes, that is correct, in adult nonsmokers. That is why I encourage we support local North Dakota ordinances that prohibit tobacco use in public places such as bowling alleys, bars and restaurants.

The American Lung Association also reports that secondhand smoke is especially harmful to young children. Secondhand smoke is responsible for between 150,000 and 300,000 lower respiratory tract infections in infants and children under 18 months of age, resulting in between 7,500 and 15,000 hospitalizations each year. It is also associated with about 430 SIDS deaths in the United States each year. So it's very important that you don't allow tobacco use around very young children and kids. The bottom line is you don't have to be a smoker to get hurt by tobacco smoke. Secondhand smoke has serious negative effects on the health of nonsmokers, especially children.

If you smoke, you have a hard choice to make. Are you going to continue down the tobacco road that hurts you, your family and your friends, or are you going to choose the difficult road to freedom, freedom from the tobacco addiction that hurts you and those you most care about? The good news is there are services available to help here at Grand Forks AFB.

Of course, it's not easy to become free of tobacco addiction. We all know someone who tried several times until they too became successful at quitting. The key is that they kept at it until they were successful. Common sense says, you will have to try, and try, and try again to break the addiction. But being free is worth it. Do what it takes to win the fight against tobacco addiction. The Grand Forks AFB healthcare team wants you to beat the addiction and will do all that it can to help you win the fight. All you have to do is ask.

So, talk to your healthcare provider today or stop in the health and wellness center for more information on our tobacco cessation classes. The number is 747-5546 and classes are offered monthly and meet once a week for five weeks. Medicines can be prescribed to help individuals be successful at quitting, it may mean finding the right combination or some people are highly successful at quitting "cold turkey" without any medicines.

On Nov. 15, the HAWC is celebrating the 31st annual Great American Smoke Out. You don't have to use tobacco to join us in supporting others quit tobacco for good. An obstacle course in the gymnasium and our potluck will begin at 11 a.m., so stop by and have some fun while helping us tackle a serious public health problem.