Am i falling in love with this city...???

umm... where do i start from..??
what do i write... ?? donno. But as i keep writing, i suspect it's all abt the comparison.. yeah.. comparison of all the cities i have been to and i have lived in ... i may not agree with me... umm.. not disagreeing too....
now if you ask me the reason for liking this city, there isn't anything straight....
as you read on.. you shd be able to find the answer.....

•  i dont have to stride to get a bus
• i dont need to spend too much on my traveling coz it takes only 30 mins to reach a distance which can be reached in 30 mins...
• i dont need to go to only few places always to freak out..
• i enjoy reaching home under moon light listening to my fav songs with out any fear of mugging
• i dont have to fear of dogs to walk in early hours
• i no more have night mares abt traffic jams..
• i dont have to pay 1 1/2 or 2 1/2 times the basic fare for auto charges...
• i dont have to travel on the congested roads built for 'X' lacs of people and occupied by '20X' of people...
• i get an opportunity to sit the banks of ocean which solaces me.... loosens ...gives immense pleasure and happiness...
• i am not afraid of a city/local bus hitting from hind end while i ride my bike..
• i no more see rulers blaming the migrants for overcrowding of the streets and roads....
• i dont need to move with people who always feel it isn't their place though staying for years..
• i dont need to worry about paying an year advance to rent a house....
• i am no more staying hours at the traffic signals...
• i sincerely appreciate the bus conductor who promptly returns my money even if it is 50ps....
• i am not frightened to sit with my girl friend in a park on V-day...
• i hardly see any movements for separatism disrupting the life....
• i do not remember an incident of communal roits....
• i dont see women sandwiched in the city buses....
• i am taking the pleasure of most friendly people..
• i am not liking to leave this city.... i am not liking to dislodge... i am not willing to .... i am not willing to....

Why is it..why is it.......and why is it??
Am i falling in love with this city....???

Passive smoking risks

Clock ticked 3.45 and it was tea time and i started with my tea-mates prashant and dheeraj. I have my tender coconut-water first, followed by their tea and next prashant's cigar. This is our daily routine which started couple of months back here in chennai. Though i advise on food habits, i haven't really done any investigation or research on passive smoking. The reason could be me being an active smoker until 2005. Thus being a frnd of cigar for abt 8 yrs, did not really know the troubles of a passive smoker... But as days went by, i started feeling the pain of passive smoking which i thought shd be explained to prashant and of course to the blog world. Thus began my search for passive smoking.... below articulated are few of my findings...

What is Passive Smoking?
Passive smoking is the inhalation of smoke, called involuntary or secondhand smoke (SHS) or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), from tobacco products used by others. It is either from 'side-stream' smoke from the burning tip of the cigarette or from the 'main-stream' smoke exhaled by the smoker. The combination of main-stream and side-stream smoke makes up environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). Toxins in Cigarette Smoke Tobacco smoke contains over 4000 chemicals in the form of particles and gases. The particulate phase includes - tar (composed of many chemicals) nicotine benzene and benzo(a)pyrene. The gas phase includes - carbon monoxide ammonia dimethylnitrosamine formaldehyde hydrogen cyanide and acrolein.

Health implications/impacts
The health risks of passive smoking have been substantially underestimated. There are numerous detrimental health effects of passive smoking. Many of the risks are similar to those associated with actually smoking a cigarette, pipe or cigar.
* Some of the immediate effects include eye irritation, head ache, cough, sore throat, dizziness and nausea.
* Adults with asthma can experience a significant decline in lung function, while new cases of asthma may be induced in children.
* In the long term, passive smokers have a 25% increased risk of heart disease and lung cancer.
* Exposure to secondhand smoke irritates the airways and has immediate harmful effects on a person's heart. It damages blood vessels, interferes with circulation and increases the risk of blood clots. It may increase the risk of heart disease by an estimated 25 to 30 percent. Continual exposure to ETS has been shown to nearly double the chance of heart attack.
* Passive smoking has been linked to the narrowing of the carotid arteries, which carry blood to the brain.
* Exposure to secondhand smoke hastens hardening of the arteries, a condition known as arthrosclerosis.
* Second hand smoke has been known to cause higher rates of lower respiratory infections, including bronchitis and pneumonia. Passive smoking also contributes to an increased amount of upper respiratory irritation and infections.
* Passive smoking is accountable for an increased number of ear infections. Studies have shown that there is a significant difference in the occurrences of ear infections between the children of smoking and non smoking parents.
* Not only can passive smoking harm foetus but it can also reduce the chances of getting pregnant in the first place. Female fertility can suffer because of passive smoking, making it harder to conceive a child.
* Women whose partners smoke have a higher risk of the baby not growing well in the womb. An infant who was exposed to secondhand smoke as a developing fetus may be at increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

What is SIDS?
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) or crib death is a syndrome marked by the sudden death of an infant that is unexpected by history and remains unexplained after a thorough forensic autopsy and a detailed death scene investigation. Post-birth exposure to secondhand smoke from the mother, father or others in the household also increases the risk of SIDS.

What can we do?
* Make your home and car smoke-free. Don't allow smoking in your home or vehicle. If family members or guests want to smoke, ask them to step outside.
* Ask people not to smoke around you and your children. * Make sure that your children's day care centre or school is smoke-free.
* Choose restaurants and other businesses that are smoke-free.
* Teaching children to stay away from smoke.
* Avoiding second hand smoke exposure especially if you or your children have respiratory conditions, if you have a heart disease and/or are pregnant.
* If your spouse or partner smokes, have him or her refrain from smoking indoors. Encourage your partner to quit smoking.
* When you absolutely must share a room with people who are smoking, sit as far away from them as possible and avoid sitting in the direction of drifting smoke.
* Instructing individuals not to smoke at work places and public places
* Creating awareness among the people particularly youth about the hazards of smoking.

Detailed organ by organ study results are available at : http://www.annals.org/content/128/6/426.full