DR. WALLACE: I'm 19 and have a very unusual problem. My boyfriend and I had dated for over a year when we broke up six months ago.

We got back together recently, but things are very different now. He doesn't even hold my hand or hug me, and he barely kisses me when we say goodbye. He tells me that he loves me, but he isn't sure why.

Now I'm really confused. Please tell me what you think about this. — Nameless, Monmouth, Ill.

NAMELESS: I believe that "actions speak louder than words." Something is bothering this guy. Give him some time to work things out — alone. Stop seeing him and don't go back unless his actions seem more friendly, if ever.

THE TRUTH ABOUT SMOKING

DR. WALLACE: I'm 16 and live with my grandparents and my great-grandfather who is 83 years old. Both my grandfather and my great-grandfather each smoke a pack of cigarettes every day and they are very healthy. You keep harping that smoking and second-hand smoke are health hazards. I don't think this is true. My great-grandfather says that the anti-tobacco people are just trying to stop farmers who earn a living growing tobacco. Is this true? Where do you get your anti-smoking information? — Butch, Bowling Green, Ky.

BUTCH: Much of the anti-tobacco information and data comes from The American Cancer Society, which has an abundance of information about why smoking can be hazardous to your health. The odds are high that those who are heavy smokers will someday have health problems. Sometimes facts and figures can be boring and, at times, may be inaccurate. But true-to-life stories from those who have "been there" or "done that" paint a picture of reality. Please read the following letter from someone who is suffering because of smoking. He tells it the way that it is!

DR. WALLACE: I would like to address this letter to all teens who think they are invincible and don't believe that smoking really causes lung cancer and death. Please allow me to pose a few questions to these young people who smoke or are thinking about lighting up:

Have you watched a loved one undergo a painful process called chemotherapy?

Have you watched a loved one undergo indescribable agony from cancer of the bone that has spread from the lung?

Have you watched a loved one be very sick, unable to eat, drink, or take care of herself?

Have you been denied the comfort given by your mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, aunt, uncle, sister or brother?

Have you watched a loved one slowly die from lung cancer, even though you pleaded with her to stop smoking?

I am watching my wife slowly die from lung cancer. Our son, daughter-in-law, granddaughters and I will not have her comfort much longer. Our loss will also be shared by her mother, sister, brothers, my mother, sisters and her many friends.

Yes teens, it's really true that smoking really does cause lung cancer and death! - Husband, Nashville, Tenn.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at [email protected]. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: E-cig Twigg