The differance between heavy drinking and alcoholism is based not on the amount that is being drunk but on the way, the drinking is affecting the life of the drinker.

There are Seven Key Signs of Alcohol Dependence

1) The person develops a tolerance for alcohol. This means that it takes more and more alcohol to feel the same level of intoxication.

2) The person has withdrawal symptoms. This means that they feel sick when there is no alcohol in their body. These symptoms include nausea, sweating, shakiness, and anxiety.

3) The person often drinks more than he does or she had originally intended to drink.

4) The person attempts to cut down or to stop drinking but all attempts on their own are failures and they just continue to drink more and more.

5) The person spends a lot of time and effort making sure he or she can get alcohol.

6) The person gives up opportunities for social, recreational, and professional activities because of their drinking.

7) The person continues to drink despite having physical and psychological problems because of the drinking.

Signs Of Alcoholism

For the purposes of diagnosis among professional diagnosticians, if a person has three of these seven signs then they are considered alcohol dependent. There are some other “less formal” type signs that can be used to determine if someone is drinking too much.

1) The person begins to miss work or is less successful at work.

2) The person seems angry or sad a lot.

3) The person hits or physically abuses members of the family.

4) The person emotionally abuses members of the family.

5) The person has blackouts (cannot remember what he or she did while drunk).

6) The person has hangovers (feels really sick the day after drinking).

Alcoholism doe not go away by itself so it is extremely important for friends and family members who recognize any combination of these symptoms or signs to encourage the person to seek treatment. In the long-term alcoholism can cause cirrhosis and cancer of the liver, heart and central nervous system damage, memory loss, impotence and a high risk of over dosing.

Alcoholism Facts

People who abuse alcohol may not want to admit that they have a problem because they are ashamed or embarrassed or maybe even they do not want to change their lifestyle.

Alcoholism can affect anyone and does not discriminate based on race, age, or circumstances. It is a treatable disease, but the person seeking treatment must be willing to give it up entirely. The treatment community for alcoholism typically supports a zero tolerance complete abstinence-based approach to treatment.

Research has shown that very few alcoholics can simply cut down on their drinking and be able to know when they have had enough and can stop. Once that tolerance is built up, the body craves the feeling of intoxication and the only way to rid the body of those cravings is through total abstinence.

Treatment For Alcoholism

Alcoholism, most importantly, is a treatable disease. It cannot always be controlled but there are large success rates with treatment. The alcoholic must remember that they will still have the disease even if they are no longer drinking and they will always be considered to be “recovering”.

Group therapy and psychotherapy

The form of group therapy that appears to be of the most benefit to people is the “mutual-help-group-counselling” approach that is often put on by a variety of helpful organizations, either by themselves or in combination with others. These include Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Women For Sobriety, Rational Recovery, Smart Recovery and LifeRing Secular Recovery.

After an individual decides to give up smoking, it takes some time for the brain to re-adjust. This period generally takes between two and three weeks to re-adjust. During this time, individuals will have strong cravings to start smoking again. Besides the period that is required for the brain to re-train itself, individuals will also have cravings related to the nicotine that remains in the body even after people have stopped smoking. It usually takes nicotine about 100 hours to leave the body. During this time, individuals will have withdrawal symptoms that will make it difficult to quit smoking. There are also psychological cravings that will last long past the time that it takes for nicotine to leave the body and the brain to not associate smoking with pleasure. For some individuals, smoking simply becomes a habit that has become ingrained in their lifestyles. It will require some thought and creativity to replace this bad habit with something more healthful. Some ideas include chewing gum, eating hard candy, going for a short walk, or reading something inspirational. Quitting smoking is very difficult. Health experts believe that smoking is just as addictive as hard drugs such as cocaine or heroine. The cravings can be quite intense and are both physical and psychological. It takes a period of 2-3 weeks before the brain retrains itself not to crave nicotine and about 100 hours before nicotine is cleansed from the body. This combination makes the first month of attempting to smoke quite excruciating. Most people who attempt to keep smoking, usually will try and fail a few times within the first three months. This is the period of time where the cravings are extremely strong. If individuals know this from the onset, they will be able to take measures to put safeguards in place so that they don’t go back to smoking. They may want to start up a new hobby or exercise program to keep their minds off of the cravings. If an individual can make it through this period, they should be successful in quitting smoking. They will need to create a plan prior to them quitting so that they are not overwhelmed when the cravings hit. If they do this, then they will have a much higher chance of actually kicking this harmful habit.

Chantix – An effective quit smoking drug

It has been a common observation that most smokers find it difficult to quit smoking after living with this habit for a long period of time. It may be a difficult task but certainly not impossible. Nowadays, you can easily find many effective quit smoking drugs. This is largely due to medical advancement in recent years.

Chantix is one oral drug that is largely prescribed to smokers who want to quit smoking. It is manufactured by Pfizer. This quit smoking drug has been approved by the FDA as well as European Union for use in the US and the European countries respectively.

Who can take Chantix?

It is recommended for adult smokers who want to quit smoking. Children under 18 years of age should not take it as it unsafe for them. Some adults may feel allergic to ingredients of Chantix. So, in such cases, it is better to avoid this drug.

Strengths of Chantix

The main doses of Chantix medication are 0.5mg and 1mg tablets. At the start of the treatment, you need to take the lower dose and then increase it after few weeks. The recommended dose of Chantix should be swallowed as a whole with a glass of water. The treatment period with Chantix medication extends to about 12 weeks.

What are its ingredients?

Varenicline tartrate is the main ingredient in a Chantix pill. It works to reduce cravings for cigarettes as well as withdrawal symptoms among adults after they quit smoking. They feel less desire for smoking and consequently quit it completely by the time Chantix treatment period is over.

Chantix tablets do not contain any traces of nicotine in the ingredients. This is unlike many traditional quit smoking drugs that help smokers quit smoking by injecting small doses of nicotine into their bodies.

Are there any side effects?

Like all prescription drugs, Chantix drug can have some side effects. The most common Chantix side effects are nausea, constipation, gas, unusual dreams, and vomiting. If these side effects increase discomfort levels, then you should seek medical help.

Availability of Chantix

Chantix is available in all licensed pharmacies in many countries of the world. It is also available online as many licensed sources sell it by providing professional services. This process may require you to do an online consultation that is a process similar to doing a face-to-face consultation with a doctor, but cannot replace it.

An online consultation starts with a questionnaire that you need to fill in citing all your personal as well as medical details. You should fill in correct details as this information helps the online doctor in judiciously evaluating your condition. If the doctor issues a prescription in your favour, then your online source delivers the Chantix medication to your address. Before that you need to complete the payment details with the online source to ensure delivery of this drug. Some established online sources ensure that the packaging is completely discreet without any mention about contents.

No one can deny the fact that there are many benefits of stopping smoking. Some benefits may become visible immediately after stopping cigarettes and some may show gradually over a period. These rewards can actually help people to improve their quality and expectancy of life. Some of the immediate benefits of quitting smoking include a better and fresher breath, freedom from bad smell from clothes and hair, turning stained teeth into whiter teeth, disappearance of yellow fingers and fingernails, return of taste and sense of smell to normal. Apart from these health benefits in the body, smokers also save money, which they usually spent to buy cigarettes. This amount becomes huge if we calculate on annual basis. Therefore, one wise decision by a smoker to quit smoking actually means lot of monetary saving. Smoking is usually not an acceptable part of any society and people who smoke are not held high in reputation anywhere. Their social acceptance becomes little difficult. Therefore, smokers who quit smoking can become role models and are acceptable to any society. Even workplaces have framed their own smoking rules and many employers hire only non-smokers. This trend may help to make environment smoke free to quite an extent. Despite these benefits, some smokers still find it difficult to quit smoking. The reasons may vary for different individuals. However, one of the main causes of not stopping smoking is nicotine addiction. This nicotine addiction is so deep rooted that smokers experience nasty withdrawal symptoms. Because of this, they succumb to the temptation of having a cigarette again after quitting it. Some anti-smoking drugs may help smokers to stop smoking. However, there are also some side effects of these drugs. It is always better to consult a doctor before you opt for a smoking cessation treatment. People who buy anti-smoking drugs like Champix in the UK, which is available only on private prescription, should take care to find genuine drugs made by original manufacturer. Champix is a prescription drug that works in a two way process. It helps smokers in quitting smoking. It acts by stopping the effects of nicotine, which helps to reduce pleasure of smoking among smokers. Champix also helps to ease the cravings and withdrawal symptoms in smokers. Smokers buy Champix in the UK, as this dual action makes it a popular drug among people. People can also buy Champix in the UK, through online medium. This process is quite simple and requires only few basic steps to be followed by people. This online process to buy Champix in the UK saves lot of time and energy of people who want to buy this drug. It is also cost effective, as it saves the consultation fee usually charged by the doctor. Websites also provide wide information about smoking cessation and various remedies, therefore smokers should explore this medium. They can also check the authentication of the drug as well as clinic while sitting in their homes. Smokers should avail the benefit of the Internet to buy Champix in the UK online, and help the cause of smoking cessation in this part of world.

With the amount of public health information available everybody is well aware that smoking cigarettes is practically suicidal. Smoking is connected to massive medical risks with the scientific community continually uncovering more dangers, and more risks to health. Coupled with the amount of money a smoker spends on his habit any smoker surely needs little more incentive to kick the habit.

The problem is that despite all the knowledge and health education, just knowing how bad it is for you doesn’t provide enough incentive or fuel the willpower to take decisive action and quit smoking for once and for all.

A contributing factor is that contrary to the wealth of health information and government advice, thousands of children start smoking daily meaning that month after month tens of thousands of young people set out on the road that their parents are already on, hooked to nicotine and set upon a journey ending in lung diseases, cancer or any of the growing list of smoking related conditions.

It doesn’t matter if you consider smoking cigarettes to be a habit or an addiction, it’s widely acknowledged that it requires hard work, dedication and a lot of willpower to break the habit and quit. The human brain reacts to nicotine, when levels of nicotine in the bloodstream decrease the brain demands a “Top Up” and instructs the body, and so you then spark up yet another cigarette and inhale a lungful of toxic chemicals, nicotine, tar and smoke which is then transported around the body by the bloodstream with nicotine being absorbed by the brain, temporarily dulling the nicotine cravings.

Ask virtually any smoker and he will tell you that stopping this sequence if events is far from simple, if you want to stop smoking then is vital that you compile for yourself a detailed list of actions you are going to take. If you start off with a course of action in place then you may feel that breaking the habit is more natural, your withdrawal symptoms will be less, stress will be reduced and your change of complete success will be greatly enhanced.

What is a good place to start? Answer the following points honestly :

How badly do you want to quit?

How Strong is your desire to stop smoking?

Do you want to quit simply to save money?

Is peer pressure your main reason for quitting?

Do you REALLY want to quit at all?

Do you want to quite just because of pressure from someone else?

These all appear to be straightforward and open questions however the bottom line is, you have to really want to stop smoking because YOU want to stop, only YOU without any outside influences, any outside pressures will just get your more stressed out and make you even less likely to succeed with your stop smoking campaign.

Using laser treatment to quit smoking is based on the practice behind acupuncture. Using laser treatment to quit smoking consists of using lasers to stimulate the acupuncture or acupressure points. This is done in the same way as where acupuncture needles would be used, inserted into specific regions of the body, but low power lasers are used instead.

According to the Cochrane Library, using acupuncture and related therapies such as laser treatment to quit smoking do not appear to help smokers who are trying to quit.

Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese therapy, generally using needles to stimulate particular points in the body. Acupuncture is used with the aim of reducing the withdrawal symptoms people experience when they try to quit smoking. Related therapies include acupressure, laser therapy and electrical stimulation.

To reach the conclusion that laser therapy to quit smoking was ineffective, 24 case studies where reviewed. Active acupuncture or related therapies was compared with sham acupuncture or their related therapy (using needles or lasers at other places in the body not thought to be useful) or other control conditions.

The review did not find consistent evidence that active acupuncture or related techniques such as laser therapy to quit smoking increased the number of people who could successfully quit smoking.

However, acupuncture may be better than doing nothing, at least in the short term; and there is not enough evidence to dismiss the possibility that acupuncture might have an effect greater than placebo.

It is tantalising to think that the accepted placebo effect could be enhanced when using acupuncture or laser therapy to quit smoking. However, the same enhanced placebo effect may be found with many other interventions to help quit smoking.

It is fair to say that adequate numbers of scientific studies into the effectiveness of laser therapy to quit smoking have not taken place to make a definitive decision one way or another. However, there are many other interventions, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), which have been proven to significantly enhance a smoker’s chance of success.

If you have been unsuccessful in your attempts to quit smoking, you have probably experienced those moments when the withdrawal symptoms are too much to handle or the cravings simply become too powerful to ignore. These moments can occur even when you are using an aid like nicotine gum or a nicotine patch. Unfortunately, once you cheat and pick up a cigarette, you can quickly become a full-time smoker again.

At Ultra-Herbal, we carry the amazingly effective Nicocure, an all-natural patch that can help you avoid those moments for good. Our patches imitate the effects of nicotine without putting any of this harmful chemical into your body. Instead, Nicocure relies on all-natural ingredients such as Lobelia Inflata. This means that you will not experience symptoms such as unrest, tension, fatigue, irritability, or weight gain while you are quitting. It also means that nicotine will be flushed completely from your system and your cravings will disappear.

By using Nicocure each day for 30 days, you can lose the desire to smoke. If during that time you feel the urge to smoke, don’t worry. Nicocure makes the taste of tobacco products unpleasant, killing the urge to cheat! This method is always safe, and 97 percent of users have had success.

Nicocure patches do not cause any side effects. However, if you do smoke while using them, you can experience nausea and dizziness, helping you to kick the habit itself as well as the nicotine craving. Plus, Nicocure is equally effective for cigarettes, chew, and any other forms of tobacco. Once you start using these incredible patches, you’ll notice results quickly, and your urge to smoke may be gone in less than two short weeks. Try Nicocure today to see what a difference the right stop smoking aid can make!

Stop smoking aids continue to flood the market, giving hope to those who have been unsuccessfully trying to quit for years. While many of the products available will help you reduce your cigarette cravings for a period of time, the majority of them are not successful at helping you quit for good. In fact, most stop smoking aids only work 20 percent of the time!

On the other hand, Nicocure patches work 97 percent of the time. The reason behind this incredible success rate is that they take an entirely different approach to the situation. Most products give you small doses of nicotine throughout the day in hopes that your addiction will subside. Our patches were designed by people who realized that in order to quit, you have to remove nicotine from your system entirely. Plus, the active ingredients in Nicocure patches are all-natural, so you don’t have to worry about trading one addiction for another.

People are often concerned about the withdrawal symptoms like weight gain, tension, and fatigue that go along with quitting “cold turkey.” Our patches eliminate these painful and frustrating symptoms by reproducing the effect that nicotine has on your body. The result is a smooth, relaxed transition from smoker to non-smoker.

Nicocure patches are more effective and safer than any other product on the market. Our faith in this product is so strong, we are willing to offer you a money-back guarantee. If you try our patches for 20 days and you are unhappy with the results, you can send back the remainder of your patches to receive a full refund. To get started, you can order your supply of Nicocure today!

Smoking: Steps to Help You Break the Habit

What you need to Know

More than 400,000 deaths in the U.S. each year are from smoking-related illnesses.

Smoking kills an estimated 120,000 people each year in the UK. It is a major cause of illness and premature death – on average, persistent smokers die 10 years younger than non-smokers.

Tobacco contains over 4,000 chemicals, many of which are harmful. These include:

• Benzene - solvent used in fuel and chemical manufacture

• Formaldehyde - highly poisonous, colourless liquid used to preserve dead bodies

• Ammonia - chemical found in cleaning fluids. Used in cigarettes to increase the delivery of nicotine

• Hydrogen cyanide - poisonous gas used in the manufacture of plastics, dyes, and pesticides. Often used as a fumigant to kill rats

• Cadmium - extremely poisonous metal found in batteries

• Acetone - solvent found in nail polish remover

• Arsenic - ingredient in rat poison

The three main components of inhaled smoke are nicotine, carbon monoxide and tar, all of which can cause disease.

Nicotine

It is absorbed into the bloodstream and effects the brain within 10 seconds. If you are a regular smoker, when the blood level of nicotine falls, you usually develop withdrawal symptoms such as craving, anxiety, restlessness, headaches, irritability, hunger, difficulty with concentration, or just feeling awful. These symptoms are relieved by the next cigarette. So, most smokers need to smoke regularly to feel ‘normal’, and to prevent withdrawal symptoms.

Carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas found in car fumes, which reduces the amount of oxygen carried in the blood. Oxygen is vital for the body’s organs to function efficiently. The reduction in oxygen changes the consistency of the blood, making it thicker and putting the heart under increased strain as it pumps blood around the body.

Tar

Tar contains many substances proven to cause cancer. Irritants found in tar damage the lungs causing narrowing of the tubes (bronchioles) and damaging the small hairs (cilia) that protect the lungs from dirt and infection.

Effects of Smoking and the reasons to stop

International studies of millions of people by government, industry, universities, and private research institutions have determined that smoking can cause:

Cancers

• Lung cancer (About 30,000 people in the UK die from lung cancer each year. More than 8 in 10 cases are directly related to smoking).

• Mouth, throat and nose cancer

• Cancer of the larynx

• Oesophageal cancer

• Pancreatic cancer

• Bladder cancer

• Stomach cancer

• Kidney cancer

• Leukaemia

Heart and circulatory diseases

• Heart attacks and Heart disease (is the biggest killer illness in the UK. About 120,000 people in the UK die each year from heart disease).

• Arteriosclerosis - build up of fatty deposits in the blood vessels. Causes loss of elasticity in the artery walls, which can lead to diseases such as stroke, gangrene and aortic aneurysms.

• High blood pressure

Respiratory disease and Other illnesses

• Asthma.

• Chronic Polmunary (About 25,000 people in the UK die each year from this serious lung disease. More than 8 in 10 of these deaths are directly linked to smoking).

• Increased frequency of colds, particularly chest colds and bronchitis. • Shortness of breath.

• Headaches.

• Stained teeth, fingers, and hair

• Insomnia.

• Diarrhea and colitis.

• Arthritis.

• Decreased sexual activity

and mental depression.

• Blood flow to the extremities is decreased (cold hands and feet).

• Smoking decreases the oxygen supply, requiring a higher blood pressure, thus causing extensive circulatory problems and premature heart attacks. Smokers have difficulty running and exercising.

• Air pollution (auto exhausts, industry wastes, etc.) increases the lung cancer rate of the smoker, but not of the non-smoker.

• The time to recover from any specific ill, whether caused by smoking or not, is much longer for the smoker. Often, a non-smoker will survive a sickness from which he would have died had he smoked.

• The smoker’s body requires more sleep every night. This extra sleep must come from his spare time. Besides needing more sleep, smokers don’t sleep as well.

• Smokers are sick more often, Smoking destroys vitamins, particularly vitamin C and the B’s. Lower intelligence has been related to smoking. In fact, smoking is both a cause and an effect of lower intelligence, just as smoking is both a cause and effect of lower income.

What are the benefits of stopping smoking?

The benefits begin straight away. You reduce your risk of getting serious disease no matter what age you give up. However, the sooner you stop, the greater the reduction in your risk.

It is never too late to stop smoking to gain health benefits.

• Benefits of stopping smoking include the following:

o Breathing improves.

o Chest infections and colds become less frequent.

o Reduction in ’smoker’s cough’.

o The smell of stale tobacco goes from your breath, clothes, hair, and face.

o Foods and drinks taste and smell much better.

o Finances improve.

o You are likely to feel good about yourself.

How can I stop smoking?

About 2 in 3 smokers want to stop smoking. Some people can give up easily. Willpower and determination are the most important aspects when giving up smoking. However, nicotine is a drug of addiction and many people find giving up a struggle.

Getting Ready to Quit

• Set a date for quitting. If possible, have a friend quit smoking with you.

• Notice when and why you smoke. Try to find the things in your daily life that you often do while smoking (such as drinking your morning cup of coffee, etc).

• Change your smoking routines: Keep your cigarettes in a different place. Smoke with your other hand. Don’t do anything else when smoking. Think about how you feel when you smoke.

• Smoke only in certain places, such as outdoors.

• When you want a cigarette, wait a few minutes. Try to think of something to do instead of smoking; you might chew gum or drink a glass of water. Buy one pack of cigarettes at a time. Switch to a brand of cigarettes you don’t like.

• Just before your stop date, get rid of all of your cigarettes, matches, lighters and ashtrays.

On the Day You Quit

• Get support and encouragement.

• Learn how to handle stress and the urge to smoke. When you get that urge to smoke (and you will), drink some water. Relax by taking a hot bath, going for a walk, or breathing slowly and deeply. Think of changes in your daily routine that will help you resist the urge to smoke. For example, if you used to smoke when you drank coffee, drink hot tea instead. Think about how your cigarette money helps support those hypocritical tobacco companies whose income is derived at the expense of the health, wealth, happiness, efficiency, and resources of the addicted smoker.

• Get medication and use it correctly. Nicotine replacement products are ways to take in nicotine without smoking. These products are like: gum, patch, nasal spray, inhaler and lozenge. Using one of these roughly doubles your chance of stopping smoking if you really want to stop.

• Give yourself rewards for stopping smoking. For example, with the money you save by not smoking, buy yourself something special.

Keep trying. Many ex-smokers did not succeed at first, but they kept trying.The first few days after stopping will probably be the hardest. Show yourself and to the other who you are. Life’s too good and too short to waste on that filthy habit.

Surveys show that about 90% of smokers wish they could quit smoking; that supposedly seem to be an overwhelming majority, but why haven’t they done so? Those tried and failed would be quick to blame nicotine and the withdrawal symptoms that followed, but are those the only culprits?

Generally, when one has the desire to give up smoking, he or she tends to rush through the process, in hope that everything will be over in matter of days. Like most, they adopt the ‘cold turkey’ act - stop cigarettes intake all at once. Such method, if successful, will be the cheapest and quickest way to quit smoking. Many, however, failed to realize that cold turkey is not for everyone; not only it puts a lot of stress on the body, it can permanently break your will to quit smoking if done incorrectly.

Unless a firm determination and the right mindset have been in place, you will most likely fail to overcome nicotine withdrawal. The addictive nicotine may be out from your body in 3 days, but the craving continues for years, and hence goes with the battle to resist all cigarette temptation. Whichever method you choose to quit smoking, if you have not make a complete preparation for your smoking cessation endeavor, all efforts will be half-baked.

That said, though it might sound basic, a lot of smokers fail to organize a solid long-term plan to cope with nicotine withdrawal, hence wreaked their dream of becoming smoking-free. Having a simple, effective plan can do a lot in determining the outcome of your quitting attempt - to begin with, here are some of the most important steps that must be included in your to-do lists right on the very day you make up your mind to toss cigarettes:

1. Support

Inform friends and family about your decision. Your commitment to quit smoking will be much easier if you have strong, positive moral support around you. They will also be more understanding at time when you are not in your best behavior.

2. Best Date to Begin

Choose a week you would least likely to get any disruption, stress or pressure. Symptoms like intense craving, insomnia, fatigue, inability to concentrate, headache, cough, sore throat, stomach pain, dry mouth and more will be pretty much normal around these times. This is the most crucial moment - drink lots of water to flush out the nicotine in your system faster, it also sates the desire of smoking for a little while too.

3. Suppress Craving

Go online and search for images of tar-tainted lungs or dying cancer patients. Print it out and paste it right at the door so you will see it everyday. Each time the craving hits, take a minute of your time viewing it again. This help thwart off the thoughts of having “just one more” cigarette especially as you make your way through the early days of nicotine withdrawal.

4. Distract Yourself

Keep yourself busy and occupied throughout the day - by doing something you like. The busier you are, the more distracted you will be to even think about the withdrawal symptoms. Also consider some light exercise; it reduces cravings while helping you feel better in general.

5. Keep Your Body in Comfort

At the end of the day, indulge yourself in a hot bath or do whatever pampers and relaxes you. Get a good rest so you’ll find yourself better equipped to start the next day off on the right foot.

Eventually, the symptoms disappear and the strong hold nicotine has over you loosens up its grip. You will break the habit for good in 3 weeks, however, the urge to smoke remains for another one to three years - though this should not be much of a concern if you are psychologically prepared since the beginning.

Get ready to quit smoking? Or are you among those who tried but failed every time? Now here is the good news; you don’t need to do special exercises or drink water to curb craving, you don’t need to face the side effects by taking drugs such as Chantix, you don’t need nicotine patches, gums or some ‘cold turkey’ method, and certainly you don’t need to suffer from anxiety, hunger, weight loss and more.