More people are using e-cigarettes, but maybe for the wrong reason. It's presumed — and advertised — that e-cigarettes can help ease smokers out of their tobacco habits. But a study involving 6,000 smokers who were given free smoking cessation aids like e-cigs or nicotine patches in a work wellness program did not quit smoking in appreciable numbers: only 1.3 percent of participants stayed smoke-free for six months.
However, when smokers were also offered a $600 reward if they quit, the rate of success was higher.
Body of Knowledge
Normal respiration for an adult at rest is 12 to 20 breaths per minute or 17,280 to 28,800 breaths in a day.
Get Me That, Stat!
A smoker who consumes a pack a day for 20 years will smoke 146,100 cigarettes or 7,305 packs in that time period, according to the American Cancer Society cigarette calculator. On average, the lifespan of the average smoker is a decade shorter than that of a non-smoker.
Life in Big Macs
One hour of walking briskly while carrying something weighing less than 25 pounds burns 306 calories (based on a 150-pound person) or the equivalent of 0.4 Big Macs. FYI, it takes approximately 50 Big Macs to equal 25 pounds. If you ate all 50 Big Macs, you'd have to walk briskly for more than 100 hours or more than 4 days and nights to burn them all off.
Stories for the Waiting Room
If you're curious about the health of the place you live, check out the new City Health Dashboard online. Developed by New York University and the Robert Wood Foundation, it collates dozens of health-related statistics, from housing costs to premature birth rates, for 500 cities in the United States.
Doc Talk
Frenulum: A fold of skin or mucous membrane that limits movement of a body part. For example, the midline fold under the tongue that attaches it to the floor of the mouth is called the frenulum linguae.
Phobia of the Week
Rhypophobia: Fear of defecation
Never Say Diet
The Major League Eating record for hard-boiled eggs (short form) is 20 in 84 seconds, held by Adrian Morgan. No yolks, please.
Best Medicine
At the dentist's office for oral surgery, a patient was reading through and signing obligatory forms. Joking, he asked the receptionist: "Does this say that even if you pull my head completely off, I can't sue you?"
The receptionist replied, "No, that's the next page. This one says you still have to pay us."
Observation
"I told my psychiatrist that everyone hates me. He said I was being ridiculous - everyone hasn't met me yet."
—Comedian Rodney Dangerfield (1921-2004)
Medical History
This week in 1903, Pepsi-Cola Co. registered the Pepsi-Cola trademark with the U.S. Patent Office. Pharmacies at the time were favorite gathering places. To increase business at his store's soda fountain, pharmacist Caleb D. Bradham created a soft drink. In the summer of 1898, he mixed carbonated water, sugar, vanilla, oils, pepsin and kola nut extract. Customers at in his pharmacy in North Carolina liked the beverage and called it Brad's Drink. As its popularity grew, Bradham changed the name to Pepsi-Cola. The name emphasized the pepsin and kola nut extract with their supposed health benefits. Pepsin, an enzyme, was thought to aid in digestion, and caffeine, an alkaloid found in kola nuts, was believed to bestow beneficial energy.
Med School
Q: Why does your skin turn red or hot to the touch when it burns?
a) Pigment cells produce extra coloring to shield the skin from further damage
b) Heat raises the temperature of the skin, burning the skin's surface
c) UV light causes DNA damage, leading to an inflammatory immune response
d) UV light boosts melanin production, causing increased redness
A: c) Excessive ultraviolet light exposure damages DNA in the skin. The body can repair some damage, beginning with the dilation of blood vessels in the area and inflammation, but too much and the damaged DNA is just shed away, i.e. peeling skin.
Last Words
"Farewell, my children, forever. I go to your Father. Monsieur, I beg your pardon."
—French queen Marie Antoinette (1755-1793), who was executed by guillotine during the French Revolution. The final words were spoken to the executioner after stepping on his foot.
To find out more about Scott LaFee and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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