SMOKING

 

Cigarette is generally bad for one’s health. It harms nearly every organ of the body, causes many diseases, and reduces the health of smokers.

Quitting smoking and it will lower your risk for smoking-related diseases and can add years to your life.

Health Risks

Smoking can increase the risk of:

1. Cardiovascular Disease– Smokers are at greater risk for cardiovascular diseases or diseases affecting the heart and blood vessels.

  • Smoking causes stroke and coronary heart disease.
  • People who smoke less than five cigarettes a day is also subject for cardiovascular disease.
  • Smoking thicken and grow narrows the blood vessels. This may result for your heart to beat faster and your blood pressure go up. Clots can also form.
  • when a clot blocks the blood flow to part of your brain or when a blood vessel in or around your brain bursts, a stroke may occur.
  • Blockages caused by smoking can also reduce blood flow to your legs and skin.

2. Respiratory DiseaseSmoking can cause lung diseases. It damages your airways and the small air sacs (alveoli) found in your lungs.

  • Lung diseases caused by smoking include COPD, which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
  • Cigarette smoking causes most cases of lung cancer.
  • If you have asthma, tobacco smoke can trigger an attack or make an attack worse.
  • Smokers are 12 to 13 times more likely to die from COPD than nonsmokers.

3. Cancer- Smoking can cause cancer almost anywhere in your body:

  • Bladder
  • Blood (acute myeloid leukemia)
  • Cervix
  • Colon and rectum (colorectal)
  • Esophagus
  • Kidney and ureter
  • Larynx
  • Liver
  • Oropharynx (includes parts of the throat, tongue, soft palate, and the tonsils)
  • Pancreas
  • Stomach
  • Trachea, bronchus, and lung

Smoking also increases the risk of dying from cancer and other diseases in cancer patients and survivors.

4. Other Health Risks

  • Smoking can make it harder for a woman to become pregnant. It can affect her baby’s health before and after birth. It includes:
    • Preterm (early) delivery
    • Stillbirth (death of the baby before birth)
    • Low birth weight
    • Sudden infant death syndrome (known as SIDS or crib death)
    • Ectopic pregnancy
    • Orofacial clefts in infants
  • Smoking can also affect men’s sperm and reduce fertility.
  • Weaker bones. Smoking can affect bone health.
  • Weaker teeth.Smoking affects the health of your teeth and gums and can cause tooth loss.
  • Eye problems. Smoking can increase the risk for cataracts (clouding of the eye’s lens that makes it hard for you to see) and age-related macular degeneration (damage to a small spot near the center of the retina, the part of the eye needed for central vision).
  • Smoking is a cause of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The risk of developing diabetes is 30–40% higher for active smokers than nonsmokers.
  • Inflammation and decreased immune function. Smoking causes general adverse effects on the body.
  • Arthritis. Smoking is a cause of rheumatoid arthritis.

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