Smoking Effects

Most people know that smoking can cause lung cancer, but it can also cause many other cancers and illnesses.The effects of smoking on human health are serious and in many cases, deadly. There are approximately 4000 chemicals in cigarettes, hundreds of which are toxic. The ingredients in cigarettes affect everything from the internal functioning of organs to the efficiency of the body's immune system. The effects of cigarette smoking are destructive and widespread.

Whenever you smoke your heart speeds up, from 10 to 20 beats per minute. The blood vessels constrict, or tighten, so that blood pressure goes up 5 to 10 points. The temperature of the skin drops by 6 degrees Fahrenheit (that's because the blood is rushing to the heart, where it would be needed in a real crisis) The level of blood sugar, the body's store of energy, falls, because the blood sugar is being burned up in a stressed out reaction. The hypothalamus, which regulates hunger, gets a “speed-up” message, so the appetite falls too.

Effects of smoking

• Smoking raises blood pressure, which can cause hypertension (high blood pressure) - a risk factor for heart attacks and stroke.

• Couples who smoke are more likely to have fertility problems than couples who are non-smokers.

• Smoking worsens asthma and counteracts asthma medication by worsening the inflammation of the airways that the medicine tries to ease.

• The blood vessels in the eye are sensitive and can be easily damaged by smoke, causing a bloodshot appearance and itchiness.

• Heavy smokers are twice as likely to get macular degeneration, resulting in the gradual loss of eyesight.

• Smokers run an increased risk of cataracts.

• Smokers take 25 per cent sicker day’s year than non-smokers.

• Smoking stains your teeth and gums.

• Smoking increases your risk of periodontal disease, which causes swollen gums, bad breath and teeth to fall out.

• Smoking causes an acid taste in the mouth and contributes to the development of ulcers.

• Smoking also affects your looks: smokers have paler skin and more wrinkles. This is because smoking reduces the blood supply to the skin and lowers levels of vitamin A.

Do your very best to stay away from cigarettes as much as possible, After dinner, instead of a cigarette, treat yourself to a cup of mint tea or a peppermint candy. Have a healthy life.