If I could quit smoking

[disneysteve]

Re: If I could quit smoking

It was a few years back but an insurer refused to cover one of my father's employees in his business because their BMI was too high so don't think smoking is the only bad habit targeted.

True. When applying for life insurance, especially, many companies will weigh you, check your sugar and cholesterol and check you for tobacco use. So smoking is not the only harmful behavior that affects insurance.

[tinapbeana]

Re: If I could quit smoking

True. When applying for life insurance, especially, many companies will weigh you, check your sugar and cholesterol and check you for tobacco use. So smoking is not the only harmful behavior that affects insurance.

i have heard of this from life insurance companies, but never from plain old medical or health insurance. DH's work has OK health insurance but they add $150 per month per smoker to the employee premium. they add nothing for folks that are overweight, nor do they ask or investigate regarding eating or exercising habits.

[disneysteve]

Re: If I could quit smoking

DH's work has OK health insurance but they add $150 per month per smoker to the employee premium. they add nothing for folks that are overweight, nor do they ask or investigate regarding eating or exercising habits.

I agree that is somewhat of a contradiction. Though some health insurers do offer various programs to encourage people to lead healthier lives, like reimbursing members for gym membership. And there have been some cases in the news of employers requiring employees to participate in regular excercise programs (which has been very controversial).

I would love to see insurance rates based in part on one's health habits, including smoking, drinking, eating healthy and exercising. Maybe if bad habits hit people in the pocketbook, they would take a more active role in their health maintenance (not that it works with smoking ).

[tinapbeana]

Re: If I could quit smoking

i agree, steve, folks are more likely to change their habits if it hits them where it hurts: the wallet. funny who that works for everythign but spending habits, but i digress...

i guess i'm prone to rant on the whole smoking vs healthy eating thing b/c of the story of my aunt and uncle. i don't think they're that unusual. they both smoked, and while a bit overweight they were generally healthy. they quit smoking, and ballooned to 300 and 400 pounds apiece. i talking to the point where neither one of them can wear lace-up shoes anymore, because they can't reach their feet to tie them, even when sitting down. simply put, they substituted food for nicotine.

now they've been at these weights for years and the chances of geting back down to the healthy realm are getting smaller and smaller.

the kicker? they both worked for the military (he's retired navy, she's a 'communications liason'), so they both have and will continue to get government benefits. i think they got a rebate when they quit smoking but i'm not sure. either way, at these weights both of them are looking at some serious health issues even when you don't consider the risk for hear disease, but all they tell each other and all they hear from the insurance companies is 'good job not smoking' even though they are at the same risk level, if not higher, than they were before.

[disneysteve]

Re: If I could quit smoking

they quit smoking, and ballooned to 300 and 400 pounds apiece.

all they hear from the insurance companies is 'good job not smoking' .

That's ridiculous. I think all the efforts to curb smoking are great, and smoking is down considerably as a result. Maybe once smoking is banned pretty much everywhere, we, as a society, will start seriously focusing on the obesity problem. There are some inroads being made with things like getting junk food out of the schools and eliminating trans fats, so I think we're going in the right direction.

[coxhoward123]

I smoke heavily. Of late I find that people have been avoiding me. I have not done anything to displease them. Do you think it’s because of my smoking habit?

[sandyandry]

I don't smoke, but I understand it's a very difficult to quit smoking suddenly!!!
I am happy that you have taken a good decision.
congrats on the quitting and good luck to you.

_______________________
Budget planning software

[creditoria]

You should really find something in life that is so overwhelming that you can simply "Forget" about smoking. My Father had smoked for 40 stinky years. He had Asthma, and other lung diseases and he still smoked despite all warnings. We all got accustomed to hard coughing at the end of each sentence. And he did not smoke some small quantity, nope he smoke a packet and a half each day. That was until he got a grandchild, and all of a sudden, he wanted to live so much he quit smoking that same day. That was 2 years ago and he has never had another cigarette since then. After 40 years of habit.

[rennigade]

move to california, get a doc's excuse, then switch to mary jane. that'll get your mind off cigs real quick.

[Jace]

I smoke heavily. Of late I find that people have been avoiding me. I have not done anything to displease them. Do you think it’s because of my smoking habit?

Smokers are more likely to face problems with dental health than non smokers. Smoking is a major cause of periodontal diseases. Bad breath is 2-3 times more likely to occur among smokers. Stain marks on your fingers? If smoking stains your fingers what do you think it’s doing to your insides? It is never too late to quit and not quitting may take your beautiful smile away.

[thekid]

He speaks the truth! Everytime that I quit, I gradually reduced the number of cigarettes I have per day. The goal was to get it down to a max 5 and maintain that or less for a number of weeks. Then, the step from 2,3 or 4 cigarettes per day to 0 was relatively easy.

I've gotten pretty good with quitting over time, it's the staying quit that I have trouble with. I seem to have strongly associated cigarettes as a stress management tool. Everytime I've quit, after a few months, some (or multiple) huge monster files come in and I'm back smoking....til things quiet down and I'm back to quitting. ....I know, I know, I need to get a stress ball instead :-)

he, he, was funny to see my old post in this bumped thread.

I've quit now. It's been over one year and there is no way I'm going back. Didn't change the technique, changed my mind frame. Can't believe I thought that way.

[feh]

Financial aspect of smoking aside, I think there are better places to look for support.

I've never smoked, but a friend who recently was able to quit mentioned this site to me: Become an EX

[GoodBuyGirl]

I just quit 9 days ago. What helped me this time is the fact that Obama signed the SCHIP tax into law. Which I think unfairly taxes smokers.
Obama can go to hell if he thinks I am going to pay an extra $10 a carton for ciagrettes to cover the cost of low income health care. I don't have a problem doing my part but I do have a problem being singled out.
So to sum things up. Obama made me mad enough to quit. I guess I can thank him for that.

[Confetti]

I just ordered an eCigarette to try to quit. I've been reading a lot about them and visit a forum where people share their experiences. It's an electronic cigarette that you puff on and it delivers nicotine, but since there's no combustion, you're not getting the mess, smell, health risk of regular cigs. It's delivering the nicotine just like a patch or gum would, but you get the benefit of satisfying the behavioral aspect of addiction. I figure it's worth a try and better than trying nothing.

[maat55]

I gave up smoking about 17 years ago to get a good rate on my life insurance. I did it cold turkey. If you want to quit, just do it. If you put the money to good use, it will make it easier.