Negative Effects of Smoking

Health Effects:

1) The effects of cigarette smoking on the cardiovascular system are multifold: Smoking lowers HDL cholesterol ("good" cholesterol), even in adolescents.

2) Smoking is the cause of nearly 85 percent of all cases of lung cancer in the United States, but smoking accounts for other types of cancers as well.

3) Smoking has many negative effects on bones and joints since it impairs formation of new bone.

4) Smoking increases acid secretion, reduces prostaglandin and bicarbonate production and decreases mucosal blood flow—which can cause peptic ulcers.

5) Smoking deteriorates the elastic properties of the aorta, the largest blood vessel in the body, which increases the risk for developing blood clots.

6) Smoking increases the activity of the sympathetic nervous system, putting additional stress on the system that regulates the heart and blood vessels.

7) In women, smoking increases risk for cardiovascular disease because it effects hormones that cause estrogen deficiency.

8) Those who smoke a pack of cigarettes a day have almost two and a half times the risk for having a stroke as nonsmokers.

9) Tar from cigarettes causes specific DNA damage to the lungs, making it particularly difficult for cells to repair.

10) Smoking and smokeless tobacco (chew) account for over 60 percent of cancers of the throat, mouth and esophagus.

11) Smokers have higher rates of leukemia, and cancers of the stomach, bladder, kidney and pancreas.

12) Women who smoke are at an exceptionally high risk for developing osteoporosis, and women smokers have a slightly increased chance of developing rheumatoid arthritis.

13) Smokers are also more disposed to developing degenerative disorders and injuries in the spine.

14) Smoking also delays the healing of gastric and duodenal ulcers.

15) Cyanedim, a chemical found in cigarette smoke, interferes with thyroid hormone production, which can lead to thyroid disease.

16) Heavy smokers are at risk for developing cataracts of the eye, and smokers also have twice the risk of nonsmokers for developing macular degeneration, an age-related eye disorder.

17) Smokers look older than nonsmokers since smokers develop more and deeper wrinkles as they age.

18) Women who smoke are at greater risk for infertility.

19) Because smoking restricts blood vessels, it can prevent oxygen and nutrients from getting to the skin - which is why smokers often appear pale and unhealthy.

20) All those cigarettes leave smokers with a condition called halitosis, or persistent bad breath.

Izat The Flying Bruneian