Don Cautions Parents On Dangers Of Smoking Close To Children

Ahmed Gabdo, An Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH), has cautioned parents against smoking cigarettes close to their children to safeguard their health and future development.

Gabdo, who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri on Thursday as the world celebrates  “No Tobacco Day” said the warning had safeguard the health of children.

Gabdo said that many parents who smoked near their children and wards, exposed them to many risks and varieties of health challenges in future.

He said that children whose parents smoked, were more prone to coughing, wheezing and asthma attacks than children whose parents do not smoke.

“They also tend to have higher rates of pneumonia  and bronchitis; smoking, not only impacts your cardiovascular health, but also the health of those around you, who do not smoke.

“Exposure to second hand smoke carries the same risk to a non-smoker as someone who does smoke. Other risks include stroke, heart attack and  cancer, among other diseases.

“Cigarettes contain about 600 ingredients and when these ingredients burn, they generate more than 7,000 chemicals, many of which are poisonous and at least 69 of them are linked to cancer,” he said.

A smoker, Musa Bashir, who claimed he had been in the business of puffing cigarette for about 17 year, said doing so removed  pain, anger and anxiety.“I was introduced to smoking by my friend and sincerely speaking, cigarette is my closest companion.

“I enjoy smoking, especially when I eat and when I am worried, it cool off my temper.

“Doctors say there are side effects, but for all these years, it has been an immune-booster to me.

‘ I am thinking of quitting, but I needed a job. I need to engage myself in positive activities that will keep me away from my friends who are also smokers. That way, I can stop,” Bashir said.