IT’S unmistakable – there’s smoke here, smoke there, smoke everywhere. As a non-smoker (though I do occasionally enjoy a pipe), I find there’s nowhere to hide; no area is truly free from smoke.
Perhaps only ‘our’ bedroom comes closest to being a 100 per cent smoke-free domain. This article prompts me to reflect on my journey with smoking – my initial involvement and my later, partial quitting.
By ‘our’ bedroom, I mean the one my partner shares with me from time to time. It remains smoke-free thanks to my rule number one: no smoking allowed in the bedroom.
For more than two decades, this rule has been strictly observed, though I still hope she will decide to quit altogether one day soon.
It often seems that it’s the father who smokes, but in many cases, both parents are caught up in this smoky addiction. For example, both my parents were smokers.
My father started with ‘rokok apung’ (nipah palm leaf cigarettes) and progressed to brands like Rough Rider, Matterhorn, and other lesser-known varieties.
My mother, on the other hand, began with homegrown tobacco known as ‘semakau sik’, rolled in specially made thin paper. Later, she went on to pipe tobacco such as Erinmore Flake or Cap Nanas.
My eldest brother, Edward Jelani, 83, quit smoking about 30 years ago, while our brother Jon (also known as Chandi), 77, still enjoys his puffs.
“I’ll quit if the price of a pack of cigarettes hits RM20,” he said many years ago.
His three sons have also been happily contributing to the thriving tobacco industry. Government policies that limit cigarette advertisements and regularly increase cigarette prices seem to do little to slow the rising trend of smoking in this country.
In 1974, while preparing for our Higher School Certificate (HSC) examinations, I joined the ranks of smokers. I used to enjoy three State Express 555 cigarettes from a pack of seven, which cost only RM1 – a price well within the reach of an Upper Sixth student.
This was especially manageable after I sold 28 batik paintings at a solo exhibition during the Methodist Secondary School’s 25th Anniversary Celebration in Sibu.
There were two reasons why I started smoking: to help keep myself awake and to scare away mosquitoes while studying in a classroom without a fan or air conditioning.
Our hostel warden at MSS would often pretend not to notice; may his kind soul rest in eternal peace.
I quit after Form Six, and despite earning a decent income by 1975 standards in RASCOM Sibu Info/Psywar Section as Assistant Editor of Berita Rayat, an Iban monthly newspaper, I felt no urge to smoke.
Nevertheless, during my first three months at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in Minden, Penang, I fell back into the habit – this time mostly with cheap cigars, never cigarettes.
However, a bad cough forced me to quit again until my teaching days at college and later in schools, when I took up pipe smoking, influenced by movies – especially those featuring sea captains – and later by our late former TYT, Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud.
I still have two pipes: one, bought in KL in 1982, was stolen by a Brunei policeman after I was knocked unconscious in a car accident at the ‘Lapau’ gate in Bandar Seri Begawan in 2000.
The ones I still keep include a piece bought in BSB for B$5.90 (imported from Shanghai) and another purchased in Serikin for RM10.
My favourite tobacco is the aromatic Blend 11, now costing about RM18 per packet. The packet currently in my room drawer at my rented apartment in Metrocity was bought in 2016.
Now that both my stepsons and their mother are smokers, I inhale secondary smoke daily. According to studies, this is just as harmful as the smoke inhaled directly by smokers.
There have been thousands of articles written about smoking. I am using this opportunity to share with readers some facts from my reading and discoveries, and to encourage everyone – especially smokers – to take these issues seriously.
For instance, according to research by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more deaths are caused by smoking than by HIV, illegal drug use, alcohol use, car accidents, and firearm-related incidents combined.
Each day, about 2,100 youth and young adults become daily cigarette smokers. More than 16 million Americans live with a serious illness caused by smoking, and on average, smokers die 10 years earlier than non-smokers.
Each cigarette contains about 7,000 chemicals, many of which are poisonous, and about 70 are known to cause cancer.
Some of the worst include nicotine (a deadly poison), arsenic (used in rat poison), methane (a component of rocket fuel), ammonia (found in floor cleaner), cadmium (used in batteries), carbon monoxide (found in car exhaust), and formaldehyde (used to preserve body tissue).
Other researchers have found that cigarettes contain acetone (used in nail polish remover), benzene (found in rubber cement), lead (found in batteries), and tar (used for paving roads).
Researchers have also found that these ingredients accelerate ageing. Tar is deposited in the lungs and contains carcinogens that encourage the development of cancer cells.
Exposure to chemicals such as benzene and formaldehyde has been linked to various cancers, including leukaemia and kidney cancer.
Furthermore, acetaldehyde, a chemical in cigarette smoke, attacks the connective tissue that holds your skin together, causing your face to sag and wrinkle.
Smoking depletes your body of vitamin C, an antioxidant vital for collagen production, which keeps skin healthy and supple.
Circulation also suffers, as oxygen is not delivered as efficiently to blood vessels, resulting in a dull complexion.
Smoking also damages teeth. The toxic chemicals in tobacco create a sticky tar residue that stains teeth and reduces saliva production, increasing the risk of cavities and gum disease.
In the 1960s, my mum used to roll her tobacco with special paper, living in what she called a ‘smoking paradise.’ A cigarette was one of her last wishes before she passed away on September 1, 1988.
There is a significant risk of periodontitis, or gum disease, which causes inflammation around the teeth, leading to swelling, bad breath, and, in severe cases, tooth loss.
Poor circulation from cigarette chemicals also results in dull hair and can lead to premature greying. It’s never too late to quit smoking; by doing so, you can enjoy the health benefits of a smoke-free life – for me, that means a less polluted and less smoky home.
When I return to my Kedap longhouse in Saratok, I will kindly and respectfully advise my elder brother Jon not to wait until the price of cigarettes reaches twenty ringgits to quit – there will likely be another price hike next month, or so the sources say.
Quitting is a matter of choice – there is no such thing as impossible. Decide before another day passes!
Consider the money you could save. If you smoke two packs a day at RM15 per pack, that’s RM30 daily. Multiply by 30, and you’re spending RM900 a month – money that could be spent on nutritious food, certainly better for your health.
Have a nice day!
The views expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of Sarawak Tribune. The writer can be reached at tawisalok@yahoo.com.
