A pianist and two other musicians played in a number of local bars in Long Beach, California for about $90 per week in the 1930s. The band, a hit with locals, was just barely making it. Occasionally, the piano player would sing to the delight of his audience who loved his baritone voice. As customers demanded to hear more vocals pieces, the piano player reluctantly sang to accommodate his audience.
Soon the trio and the singing pianist where a huge sensation and the band began having greater success. A few years later the band recorded a number one hit, the pianist name was Nat King Cole and the song “Mona Lisa”.
The 80/20 rule tell us the that 80 percent of our success comes from 20 percent of what we do. The trio and their music was were 80 percent but Nat King Cole’s voice was the 20 percent that made the difference and propelled the group into stardom.
If you watch what you eat, exercise regularly, and otherwise take care of your health but you smoke then you are ignoring the 20 percent that matters. Quitting smoking is the number one thing anyone can do to improve their health and the health of those around them.
Cigarette smoking causes 87 percent of lung cancer deaths. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in both men and women. According to the 2004 British Study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Health a smoker’s life is shorten by an average of 10 years.
The Effects of Smoking a Cigarette
Here is a partial list of people who would probably still be with us if they had quit smoking:
*ABC anchorman Peter Jennings.
*Renaldo “Obie” Benson, member of the Four Tops.
*Comedian Alan King.
*Author Stephen Ambrose.
*Singer Rosemary Clooney.
*Baseball’s Cal Ripken Sr.
*Baseball’s Joe DiMaggio.
*Actor Vincent Price.
*Actor Chuck Connors.
*Jazz singer Sarah Vaughan.
*Big band performer and Actor Desi Arnaz.
*Actor Yul Brynner.
*Jesse Owens, Olympic gold medalist.
*Jazz great Duke Ellington.
*Nat King Cole.
The could have given society another movie or another song, or read the news for us one more time, etc but instead they died of lung cancer (a preventable disease).
Yes, smoking affects us all. The loss in talent and good people is the real effect of smoking a cigarette.
SOURCE:
American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts and Figures 2004.
Atlanta, GA: American Cancer Society, 2004.
