DR. WALLACE: Please allow an older lady to share my story with today's teens. My message is sincere and comes from my heart.
When I was 12 years old, my best friend and I would borrow my grandpa's tobacco pipe, fill it with tobacco out of a can, and go behind our barn and share puffs. When I was 13, I was sneaking a few cigarettes from my dad's cigarette pouch, and I would share a smoke with my friend out behind the barn. By the time I turned 14, my friend and I were addicted to tobacco and we both did anything we could (beg, borrow, steal) to satisfy our tobacco habit.
I quit school when I was 16 and worked in a store. When I got paid, the first thing I did was to buy a couple packs of cigarettes. I smoked heavily for 66 years. By age 18, I smoked over two packs of cigarettes daily.
During the time when I was a nicotine slave I suffered all the negatives that tobacco will cause - shortness of breath, foul tobacco breath, coughing spells, burns on clothes and furniture, and a shortness of my hard-earned cash. My husband, who never smoked, died 10 years ago. I'm pretty sure my secondhand smoke contributed to his death.
Unfortunately, my young friend who joined me in 'a puff or two' way back when also became a two-pack a day smoker. Sadly, she passed away 20 years ago from lung cancer. I've been reading your column for quite some time and I'm well aware that you encourage teens never to start smoking and to end this nasty habit ASAP if they do smoke. At first I would just smile when I read your anti-smoking columns. Through the years they started making a lot of sense to an old gal like me.
Six months ago I decided to have the guts to quit smoking. I threw away two unopened packs and haven't smoked a cigarette since. I'm thrilled that I had the courage and willpower to end my nicotine habit. I admit it was difficult for the first two or three weeks. Morning coffee without my usual two cigarettes was difficult. My favorite time to smoke was after an intake of food. Again, I had difficulty, but after three weeks passed, I was home free. Dr. Wallace, if I stopped smoking, any an addicted smoker could quit smoking! I might have been the most addicted nicotine victim on this planet. I was going through cigs like a fish swims through water!
Teens, please take an older lady's advice. I've seen a ton of my hard-earned money go up in smoke. Thank the Good Lord that I'm still alive and kicking. If you presently smoke, please quit. You are the future of our country. If you don't smoke, God bless you. Keep it that way. - Granny, Tupelo, Ms.
GRANNY: Thank you very much for your inspiring story. It will have a positive effect on many teens. Good for you that quit after having been so addicted for so long!
OBESE TEENS USUALLY STAY OBESE
TEENS: Do you lay off junk food, get proper rest, exercise, and ration your TV — watching time? If you answer yes, congratulations! But you are the exception, not the rule.
According to a study in The Journal of the American Medical Association, U.S. children 18 and younger are adding unwanted pounds at alarming rate. In the past decade the percentage of significantly overweight children has almost doubled.
In prior studies, it took 30 years for the classification of "overweight" to double by percentage. This is an alarming statistic. Among the reasons given for this increase: spending too much time watching television, using computers and playing video games, and parents who feed their families with fast food more often than home cooking.
Just a reminder: obese teens usually spend their entire lives being overweight!
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