Many types of jobs are associated with health hazards, and the lungs are among the most vulnerable parts of the body to airborne threats. Exposure to some substances can lead to occupational lung disease and in some cases, even lung cancer. Occupations especially at risk are: miners, farmers, asbestos handlers, printers, painters, sandblasters, cement and concrete finishers, bricklayers, welders, ironworkers, shipbuilders, and those working with epoxy resins or isocyanates.

The tubes that carry air in and out of our lungs are called bronchi. The bronchi, along with the nasal passages, provide excellent protection against most natural irritants. Unfortunately, modernisation and industrialisation exposes our pulmonary systems to many irritants that we simply are not equipped to process on our own.

Around 5.4 million deaths a year are caused by tobacco. Smoking is set to kill 6.5 million people in 2015 and 8.3 million humans in 2030, with the biggest rise in low-and middle-income countries. Every 6.5 seconds a current or former smoker dies, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). An estimated 1.3 billion people are smokers worldwide (WHO). Over 443,000 Americans (over 18 percent of all deaths) die because of smoking each year. Second hand smoke kills about 50,000 of them. 1.2 million people in China die because of smoking each year. That's 2,000 people a day. Tobacco use will kill 1 billion people in the 21st century if current smoking trends continue. 33 percent to 50 percent of all smokers are killed by their habit. Smokers die on average 15 years sooner than nonsmokers.

Get rid of all your cigarettes. Put away your ashtrays. Change your morning routine. When you eat breakfast, don't sit in the same place at the kitchen table. Stay busy. When you get the urge to smoke, do something else instead. Carry other things to put in your mouth, such as gum, hard candy, or a toothpick. Reward yourself at the end of the day for not smoking. See a movie or go out and enjoy your favourite meal.