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Smoking
Smoking Tobacco Products:
Cigars: A small role of tobacco leaf for smoking.
Cigarettes: A tube of finely cut tobacco rolled in thin paper, for smoking.
Smokeless Tobacco Products:
Snuff: Tobacco in the form of a powder that is inhaled into the nose, not smoked.
Chewing Tobacco: Tobacco that is chewed, not smoked.
Smoking is the act of inhaling the fumes from burning cigarettes or other forms of tobacco, known to be a causative factor in the development of several diseases, especially lung cancer. Smoking can cause a number of serious health problems. This includes lung cancer, heart attack, and stroke. Smoking affects your body in just some of the following ways:
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The Heart: because of the irritating effects of nicotine and other components of tobacco smoke, your heartbeat is more likely to be irregular, which can lead to a heart attack.
Blood Vessels: Nicotine makes your blood vessels constrict. Your blood pressure increases by 10-15%, putting additional stress on your heart and blood vessels, increasing your risk of heart attack and stroke. Smoking increases your risk of vascular diseases of the extremities. Severe cases may require amputation.
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Pregnant Women: Women who smoke during pregnancy can cause severe damage to their unborn baby. The umbilical cord shrinks and the baby is not able to get the nutrients it needs in the womb.
Many smokers think that they are not causing anyone damage but themselves, but secondhand smoke is very dangerous. It can make families and friends have more colds and asthma attacks. It can also put them at risk for heart and lung diseases. Secondhand smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals and 43 known cancer-causing toxins and it is the 3rd leading preventable cause of death in the US.
Please note – there is NO number/amount of tobacco products that you can safely have!!! And, “light cigarettes” are just as dangerous as regular cigarettes. |
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