Simple Tips on How to Quit Smoking

Analyze reasons to quit

Many people find it really terrible smoking but don't know how to quit. You can start by thinking out various reasons why you must stop or at least, a reason. Review these reasons thoroughly and draw a conclusion at the back of your mind. 

Take aggressive decision

Because smoking is a passionate habit, having analyze reasons why you must quit smoking,make one but a brave and bold decision to put an end to the habit. Get a pen and write your decision boldly somewhere you can see it everyday.

Determination of purpose

Try to be very determined to quit, be very passionate about your decision. Memorize on it all time and above all, seriousness counts, be very serious about you new decision.

Engage in worthwhile activities

Try be creative, get yourself engaged in meaningful activities that can occupy your mind frame completely, it could be something you love doing before or something new. When you think/feel about smoking "don't give in to it." Concentrate on the worthwhile activities and be true to yourself.

Abstain from friends that smokes

During this period of training yourself to quit smoking, abstain from your friends that are smoking. Meanwhile, withdraw from co-habit like alcohol and other form of drugs. These may hamper your success.

Go closer to friends that don't smokes

Go closer to friends that doesn't smoke at all and hates it. They are your true friends at this period and can encourage you, make you begin to enjoy your new decision.

Alternate smoking with regular intake of fruits

Let your intake of fruits increase than as you use to. This is because you have to feed your cells with healthier chemicals as you want to flush out the unhealthy chemicals from your cells.

Be persistent on your decision

To effectively quit smoking, you have to be persistent on your new mind-set. By the count of each day, go to where you had boldly written your decision on earlier and re-assure yourself of the goals to be achieved, following these tips and again; truthfulness to yourself.

Practically realize purpose

Practically realize the purpose of applying these steps by following the steps from start to finish continually until you starts seeing positive results.

Give your reasons a pass mark

Having applied these tips to quit smoking, measure your purpose. Make out time and review each reason, check out for the one that has been met with then, give it a pass mark and apply tips again until achieve any reason that had not been met with if any.

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Professional Clothing Tips for Summer

Summer is a season everyone looks forward to. It is a season with lots of outdoor activities. It is also a time for bright colors that replace the dull and dark colors of winter. Summer season nevertheless has its own challenges. The peak of summer is often characterized with scourging heat of the sun that leaves a lot of people longing for cold drinks and cool environment. It is a time when a lot of people are scantily clothed, so as to allow evaporation of water (sweat) from their body, as evaporation leads to cooling. The greater the part of the body that is exposed to air the greater the cooling sensation people experience. In an attempt to maximize the cooling effect they experience, some people tend to be overly scantily clothed such that they stray from norm of decency.

Dressing professionally to work during the summer season can be a challenge for many as professional dressing prohibits any form of scanty dressing. To ward off the heat of the sun and also enjoy the cooling effect of evaporation of water (sweat) from the body in the summer season, there are couple of clothing tips you can consider. 

Colors of the Clothes You Wear

During the summer season endeavor to wear clothes with very bright and reflective colors, when shopping for summer clothing, buy clothes with very bright colors especially clothes with white background such as stylish tops and blouses, dresses, bright colored skirts, white pants, or white men's dress shirts, bright colored t-shirts. Avoid clothes with dark colors especially solid black clothes, such as solid black pants, black men's dress shirts, black dresses or black skirts, black men's suits. Bright colors are very reflective, they reflect the heat of the sun away from your body, while dark colors are very good absorbents of heat and you certainly do not want to wear such clothing during the summer season. Wearing bright colored clothing in summer will help to reduce the amount of heat your body absorbs.

The Style of the Clothing You Wear

When possible avoid clothing with long sleeves. Wear clothing with short sleeves, such as short sleeve dresses, knee length skirts, 2 or 3 piece dress suits or skirt suits with short sleeves. You can also wear a cotton jacket over a sleeveless top or blouse. Men can wear men's short sleeve dress shirts, men's walking suits or men's casual shirts.

The Material the Clothes You Buy are Made From

Different clothing are made from different types of materials, some of these materials are cotton, nylon or synthetic in nature. The material from which clothing is made from gives it its unique characteristics. These characteristics determine the durability, comfort and safety of such clothes around certain environment. It is very important to take into consideration the material your clothes are made from. During summer you need to wear or dress in clothes that will give you maximum comfort. For this reason it is always preferable to buy clothes made from cotton than clothes made from synthetic materials. Cotton material besides being hypo-allergic and dust-mite resistant allows better air circulation than synthetic materials. The easy circulation of air in cotton materials helps to remove and absorb body moisture (sweat), draw heat away from the skin and keep the body cool and dry. There are many different clothing types that are made from cotton materials. They include cotton tee-shirts, cotton men's suits, cotton dresses, and cotton men's dress shirts. When buying your clothing make sure to read the descriptions of the material from which the clothes are made from.

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How to Have a Long Lasting Manicure

Every so often I treat myself to a salon manicure. This is usually during the summer or when I have to attend a special event. When I don't want to spend the money on a professional manicure, I have tricks that I use to do my own manicure at home and have it looking just as good as - and in some cases, better than - the one I paid for. The following tricks and tips will help you achieve great results at home too. 

Clean Your Nails    This sounds so simple but can be forgotten if you are not removing old polish. Swipe nail polish remover across the nail to get rid of oils and create a surface to which the polish will adhere better.

Buff and File Your Nails    Buy a good quality nail file and buffer that will let you smooth ridges, smooth the nail surface and impart a high shine to your nails instantly. It is also a good idea to keep your nails filed to a reasonable length to prevent breakage.

Apply a Base Coat    This will provide the foundation for a longer lasting, smoother polish finish. It will also help protect nails from discoloration that may occur with some darker polishes.

Apply 2 Thin Coats of Polish    Remove the excess polish from the brush and swipe the color up the middle of the nail. Follow with one swipe of color on either side of this to completely cover the nail. Resist applying more polish at this point. Let it set and then apply another thin coat using the same technique.

Apply a Top Coat    Buy a product that is marketed as a top coat and not just a clear polish. A true top coat polish should dry instantly and provide high shine while adding protection against chips. Apply one thin coat after the color and then reapply every few days for extra insurance against nicks and chips.

Tidy Up the Edges    Use a cuticle pusher dipped in polish remover and run it around the edges of your nails to remove any excess paint that may have missed it's mark.

Moisturize Your Hands and Cuticles    Ensure that your hands and cuticles are soft and smooth. This will keep them free from hang-nails and other unsightly snags. Apply a rich hand cream at night and keep a cuticle balm in your purse for daily use as well.

With these tip and tricks, you will have a perfectly professional-looking manicure done right in your own home for a fraction of the cost of one done at a salon.

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Heel Heights in Relation to Economic Trends

It's fairly common knowledge that women like to keep pace with the latest fashion trends. However, it probably is not common knowledge that fashion trends can sometimes take on a role of prognosticator.

An IBM study that was particularly focused on social media and fashion blogs revealed some interesting and unsuspected results. The study suggested that when women's shoe fashion trends toward lower heels, that may be a signal of an improving economy. IBM, in the study, tracked the trends in women’s heel heights. The study showed a seeming correlation between the heel heights of womens's footwear and the stability of our economy. 

The Current Economic Conditions

The Bureau of Economic Analysis defines gross domestic product as the output of goods and services. Quarterly statistics from the Bureau of Economic Analysis show that the United States' gross domestic product increased annually at an approximate rate of 3.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011. In the third quarter, however, the gross domestic product increased by only 1.8 percent, suggesting an upturn in the economy from third to fourth quarter.

In addition, the analysis of personal income in the United States for February 2012 showed  an increase by $28.2 billion, and disposable personal income increased by $18.9 billion.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis of private wages, payrolls from goods-producing industries, and payrolls from services-producing industries showed significant increases.  Such increases would seem to suggest that the economy is making a slow, but steady recovery.

Relationship between Women’s Heel Heights and the Economy

During the Great Depression, the low-heeled women’s shoes of the 1920’s were replaced by high heels and platform shoes. During the oil crisis of th 1970's. there was a trend from the low heels of the 1960’s back, once again, to the higher heels and platform heels. During the dot-com crisis of the 1990’s, women's low-heeled shoes were replaced by significantly higher heeled fashions and stilettos.

According to some consumer product experts, during a downturn of our economy, women's shoe fashions trend to higher heels. Some experts surmise that this may be because women turn to more showy clothes, shoes, and accessory fashions as as a form of fancy, whimsy, and escapism.

Heel heights trended to their greatest heights in 2008 and 2009, just as the economic crisis was beginning. Since fashion magazines and fashion bloggers are now showing a return to lower heels, the IBM study seems to suggest that the trend toward lower heels could be an prognosticator of a gradually improving economy.

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Truth Behind Weight Gain

The topic of soda and weight gain is fraught with conflicting information. “Yes, soda makes you fat!” “No, it doesn't as long as it is consumed in moderation.” What to believe? Who is telling the truth? It’s important to know who and where the information is coming from. Below are five scandalous and scary facts about soda and weight gain:

Soda Turns You Into a Mutant!

Okay, not really, but it does mess with your body on the cellular level and makes you more susceptible to soda weight gain. A study involving 33,000 men and women showed that sugary beverages (including soda) interacts with our “obesity genes” and increases that risk more than heredity alone. This is true even when taking into account diet and exercise. In other words, the more soda you drink, regardless of how you eat and exercise can lead to soda weight gain.

Soda can Cause You to Chase the Dragon!

Drinking too much of that carbonated stuff not only helps you perfect your ability to burp out the alphabet like a pro, it can also lead to soda addiction. The possibility of getting cracked out on Coke (Coca-Cola that is) is something that the beverage industry denies, but those of us who have had (or still have) a soda addiction knows it's true. Let’s see now. What are some of soda’s key ingredients? Sugar. Check. And/Or corn syrup. Check. Caffeine. Check. Oh. Those ingredients have addictive properties. And if you have a soda addiction, you’re probably drinking way more than you should. Those calories add up and guess what? Soda weight gain.

The Soda Industry is Lying to You and Pays Off Companies to do the Same!

Coca “don’t blame us for the obesity epidemic” Cola is a leader of information spin when it comes to soda and weight gain. They have an entire “institute” devoted to providing the “truth.” Their message, along with other impartial sounding “associations” like the American Beverage Association maintains that no single thing causes obesity and soda can be a part of a healthy life style. Blah, blah, blah. Hah! If the overall soda intake in the United States was at a healthy level (i.e. having an occasional soda) the soda industry would go out of business.

Did you know that studies that refute the relationship between weight gain and soda tend to be conducted by people who are financially supported by the beverage industry? Did you know that the makers of Dr. Pepper donated millions of dollars to the American Dietetic Association (ADA) and in exchange was allowed to place the ADA label on their diet drinks? There are many more examples. How can we trust these “authorities” to tell us the truth about healthy levels of soda consumption and the connection between soda and weight gain?

They Make it Cheap for a Reason!

The price of soda relative to that of fresh fruits and vegetables is much less expensive. From 1979 - 2009 the price of fresh fruits and vegetables has risen over 300% while the price of soda and other sugary goods has risen 125%. With so many people watching their wallets, less expensive and less healthy foods are tempting to reach for. However, what we save in money we gain in an abundance of over processed foods, full of sugar and beverages like soda that can lead to weight gain.

Coca Cola has marketed their products extremely hard in poor areas such as New Orleans and Rome, Georgia where the people drink three Cokes a day on average. Coke has pushed its campaign to places like Brazil where they made smaller sizes and charged twenty cents per can in an effort to get people hooked. When former Coke chief operating officer in both North and South America, Jeffrey Dunn spoke out about the lack of morality of marketing cheap, bad food to poor people, he was fired.

Your Kid is a Walking Target!

Start ‘em young and get ‘em hooked I always say. Whether it’s vending machines selling soda

in schools in exchange for sponsorship and money (did you know that one such sponsorship required the school to print the beverage's name of its rooftop so that planes arriving at a nearby airport could see it?!), or the incessant advertisements and availability making it hard to resist, soda now makes up 2/3 of the average child’s beverage calories. For every can of soda a child drinks each day, the risk of soda weight gain increases by 60 percent. Sixty percent!

When your child is drinking soda s/he is not also drinking healthy beverages like water along with it. The soda is replacing healthy drinks. This gets them addicted early, packs in calories, messes with their genes, not to mention possible teeth and bone decay and more, and yes, can lead to soda weight gain.

Make no mistake about this. The soda industry has no interest in us being occasional consumers. They want to be every day, multiple times a day consumers. They want us to want and need our soda fix like many coffee drinkers to get going in the morning. Sugar in drinks like soda are the single most caloric food source in the United States.

Most of the information in this can apply to non-soda sugary beverages and a host of sugary foods. Soda has been singled out because of the calorie intake market share it has steadily gained. After all, you can also gain weight from drinking fresh orange juice if you drink enough of it.

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