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Smokers with digestive trouble often blame their diet, stress, bad luck -- anything but their cigarettes. After all, the stomach is a long way from the lungs. Or so it seems. You won't read it on the Surgeon General's warning, but the fact remains: Smoking is hazardous to your entire digestive system. If you're a smoker, think of that pain in your stomach or burning in your chest as a wake-up cal...

Okay, so the nicotine patches and gum didn't work. Somebody suggests hypnosis, but having someone experiment with your brain doesn't sound appealing right now. Maybe it's time to try a little group support. That's what Susan Gosden, did. Desperate to stop smoking, she found inspiration -- and release -- in a smoking cessation group held by Kaiser Permanente. Nine months after attending the 10-week...

They say that cigarettes can be harder to kick than heroin. From what we hear that's true and then some. Because it's so difficult but so essential, we asked people we know to describe how they quit and what it felt like. Although quitting was a triumph for everyone, some still see themselves smoking in their dreams. One writer is hoping there's a smoking section in heaven where he can light up wi...

What's the difference between chewing and spit (or snuff) tobacco? Chewing tobacco ("chaw") is usually sold as leaf tobacco, and users place a large wad of it inside their cheek. Users, who tend to be older men, keep chewing tobacco in their mouths for several hours (the tell-tale bulge often gives them away). Snuff, which is much more common today, is a powdered tobacco that's usually sold in ca...

Linking cigarettes and cancer In the early 1960s, researchers at Brown and Williamson, one of the world's largest tobacco companies, made a sickening discovery: Smoking could cause lung cancer. In public, the company claimed cigarettes were perfectly safe. Behind closed doors, their scientists searched for ways to remove cancer-causing compounds from cigarettes. As their own internal documents sho...

You probably know that drinking during pregnancy can cause birth defects in your unborn child. But do you know what smoking during pregnancy can do? To test yourself, choose which of the following are true if you smoke while you're pregnant: 1) You're more likely to give birth to a "preemie," a premature baby, who runs a greater risk of birth complications and serious illness. 2) You're more likel...

Why should I quit smoking? Because it could save your life. They don't call cigarettes "cancer sticks" and "coffin nails" for nothing. When you smoke, you're exposing yourself to more than 4,800 chemicals, including cyanide, benzene, and ammonia -- and at least 69 of those chemicals can cause cancer. Perhaps the best known is nicotine, an addictive compound that can make it ferociously hard to st...

As any cigar lover will tell you, cigars and cigarettes are in two different leagues. Cigarettes come with a warning label; cigars come with a fancy box. A cigarette might last five minutes; a good cigar can last an hour or more. While cigarette smoking has steadily declined over the years; cigar smoking has become more popular, increasing by more than 33 percent between 1996 and 2006. And, of cou...

Albert Einstein once remarked that pipe smoking "contributed to a somewhat calm and objective judgment in all human affairs." Whether the observation is true or not, pipe smoking has had many other famous devotees, among them Franklin D. Roosevelt, Mark Twain, and the fictional Sherlock Homes, who often disappeared into a haze of pipe smoke while solving his cases. Today, pipes are still a symbol...

Most cigarette smokers know the dangers of tobacco. After all, the Surgeon General stamps a warning right on the pack. But what about the people sitting next to the smoker? What about his friends and coworkers? His children? Secondhand smoke doesn't come with a warning label. If it did, more smokers might try harder to kick their addiction. According to the best current estimates, secondhand smoke...

Like many heavy smokers, Steven "Bubba" Ash would love to quit. "It's messing up my whole life," he says. In addition to draining his finances, his pack-a-day habit is killing his stamina. He used to be a serious runner, but he just doesn't have the lungs anymore. Bubba is 15. The high school freshman from Plains, Montana, first started smoking when he was 10. "Both of my parents were heavy smoker...

Ray Lader used to be an ideal customer for the tobacco companies: He was 12-years-old, loyal to his brand, and addicted. But within a few years, he turned into a major thorn in their side. Like thousands of other youth in Florida, Lader became an activist in the Truth Campaign, an unprecedented, highly successful program to curb teen smoking. Lader has the perfect credentials for an anti-smoking ...

Few methamphetamine users fit the stereotype of the gaunt, twitchy addict. Some users take the drug in plush offices or lavish houses. Some wear suits or even the white coats of the medical profession. But whether a user looks like a CEO, a vagrant, or a soccer mom, there's a chance that the addiction is on display when he or she smiles. As methamphetamine use became rampant over the past decade ...

What are 12-step programs Since 1935 -- the year that Alcoholics Anonymous was founded -- millions of people have turned to 12-step programs to help them overcome often life-threatening addictions or self-destructive behaviors. The 12-step approach combines group support with specific activities or steps that are intended to move a person closer to recovery. The concept has expanded greatly since...

What is alcohol abuse? Many people enjoy drinking alcohol in social settings or to relax. But sometimes people may find they're drinking too much. And when heavy drinking leads to health, work, or relationship problems, it's a form of alcohol abuse. Experts say that alcohol abuse is marked by one or more of the following problems: continuing to drink despite alcohol-related problems; indulging in ...

Casual drinking is a common ritual in our culture -- from campus keg parties, to a "beer and a dog" at the ballgame, to a nice bottle of wine on the dinner table. In countless advertisements, fun-loving youth frolic on the beach with beer cans in hand: To drink is to be happy, the tantalizing ads promise. But while it's hard to deny the pleasures of a gin and tonic on a lazy summer evening, for mi...

You've heard the adage that "drinking and driving don't mix." But if you've ever been in a bar around closing time, you know that a lot of people haven't gotten the message. A report from researchers at Boston University estimates that Americans take about 820 million drives each year after drinking. Almost 20 percent -- 159 million -- of those drivers are legally drunk when they take the wheel. ...

If you're over 60, you may use alcohol in much the way you did when you were younger. You may have a glass of wine at a meal, a beer or two at a ball game, or a gin and tonic at a party with friends. And if your doctor says it's fine for you to drink, there's probably nothing wrong with it. But if you've found yourself feeling tense and irritable when you're not drinking, you may have a problem....

In the 2005 mock documentary "I Am a Sex Addict," the protagonist sits dolefully in an anonymous 12-step meeting for people "addicted" to sex. He's ended up there after being unable to control a compulsion to seek out prostitutes when his intimate relationships faltered. "The more I indulged the addiction, the stronger it became," he says, confessing to the group that his sexual compulsions destr...

When does gambling become a problem? Gambling can be a fun diversion for adults of any age. Many people enjoy going to the horse races, picking teams in an office pool, or dreaming of lottery winnings. For seniors, especially, a bingo parlor or casino can be a great opportunity for socializing and a nice break from routine life. The great majority of people, young and old, gamble responsibly, but...

Is substance abuse a problem among seniors? While the nation wages war on marijuana, cocaine, and other street drugs, roughly one out of five seniors struggles with a different kind of substance abuse. The drugs that have them in their grip -- prescription medications and alcohol -- are perfectly legal, but that doesn't make the addictions any less devastating to older people and their families. ...

The hazards of smoking go far beyond lung cancer and heart disease. In fact, it would take microscopic print to list every potential warning on cigarette packages. Take this short quiz to see how much you know about the dangers of smoking. 1. Smoking raises the risk of many types of cancer. Which of these cancers has been linked to smoking? a. Cervical cancer b. Bladder cancer c. Pancreatic can...