[Jephanie]

Smoking is one habit I will fail to understand at all. My fiance used to smoke as a teenager with her friends. She started (like most others) due to peer pressure. But when she turned 19, she quit cold turkey. When I met her friends, I was appalled. They both looked like they were in their 40's old when they were actually 34 and 35. My fiance, who takes very good care of her skin, is 34 and looks like she's in her mid- to upper-20's. Smoking seriously ages the skin.

As a life-long non-smoker, I am able to clearly point out that "light" smoking or smoking with a jacket on does nothing to shelter the smell. The smoke gets in your hair and stays on your skin. Wearing a jacket simply reapplies the smell to your skin and other clothes every time you put it on. And chewing gum (especially cinnamon...) does no good. The smell is not in the mouth, it is in the larynx. As a non-smoker, I can honestly say that deep kissing a smoker used to make me want to hurl. I literally had to be drunk to handle it. Stephanie, being an ex-smoker, found herself dating a smoker a while back and was appalled by it--especially after she came down with double pneumonia.

Now, when we go out to bars to dance and have some fun, we literally take a shower when we get home to get the smell off our bodies and out of our hair. Otherwise, the bed sheets and pillows will stink.

We're not saying any of this to be mean but to state a simple truth. When you burn a cigarette in close proximity to your hair and clothes, the smell can't be hidden. And no matter how much gum you chew or mouthwash you gargle, the smell and taste are still there. And all of them are huge turnoffs (not just in a dating sense).

Assuming you are permanently successful, you'll find your taste buds will eventually regain their sensitivity and you'll enjoy more foods (with a lot less salt). And you'll save a bundle of money, too! And while I hate to use the "do it for the children" argument, I have to say that your kids smoke right along with you (even if you smoke outside) as they are exposed to the smells and tastes, too. Your palate changes may actually affect their diet, too, since you might compensate for flavor by using a lot of salt or grease in your foods. And when they hug you, the smell transfers right to them.

I applaud your efforts to quit and wish you all the success in the world.