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How Smoking Affects Your Body
There is hardly a part of the human body that is not affected by the chemicals in the cigarettes you smoke. Let’s take a tour of your body to look at how smoking affects it.
Smoking and the Mouth
As a smoker, you are at risk for cancer of the mouth and throat. Tobacco smoke can also cause gum disease, tooth decay and bad breath. The teeth become unsightly and yellow. Smokers may experience frequent headaches. Lack of oxygen and narrowed blood vessels to the brain can lead to strokes.
Lungs and Bronchi
Moving down to the chest, smoke passes through the bronchi, or breathing tubes, where hydrogen cyanide and other chemicals in the smoke attack the lining of the bronchi, inflaming them and causing that chronic smoker’s cough. Because the bronchi are weakened, infection is more likely. Mucus secretion in the lungs is impaired, leading to chronic cough. Smokers are 10 times as likely to get lung cancer and emphysema as non-smokers.
Smoking and the Heart
The effects of smoking on the heart are devastating. Nicotine raises blood pressure and heart rate within seconds after entering the body. It also makes the blood clot more easily. Carbon monoxide robs the blood of oxygen and leads to the development of cholesterol deposits on the artery walls. All of these effects add up to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. In addition, the poor circulation resulting from cholesterol deposits can cause impotence and the loss of circulation in fingers and toes.
Smoking and the Body's Orgrans
The digestive system is also affected. The tars in smoke can trigger cancer of the esophagus and throat. Smoking causes increased stomach acid secretion, leading to heartburn and ulcers. Smokers have higher rates of deadly pancreatic cancer.
Many of the carcinogens from cigarettes are excreted in the urine, where their presence can cause bladder cancer, which is often fatal. High blood pressure from smoking can damage the kidneys.
The health effects of smoking have results we can measure. Forty percent of men who are heavy smokers will die before retirement age, as compared to only 18 percent of non-smokers. Women who smoke face an increased risk of cervical cancer, and pregnant women who smoke take a chance with the health of their unborn babies.
But the good news is that when you quit smoking, your body begins to repair itself. Ten years after you quit, your body has repaired most of the damage smoking caused. Those who wait until cancer or emphysema has set in aren’t so lucky; these conditions are usually fatal. It’s one more reason to take the big step and quit now.
How Smoking Affects the Mind
- Mary smokes to relax when she’s feeling tense.
- Bob smokes to feel more alert when he’s feeling dull.
- Others smoke when they are depressed or bored or to overcome feelings of anger or grief.
How can a cigarette be so many things to so many people? The answer lies in the chemicals in cigarettes and the powerful psychological effects they have.
Nicotine is a stimulant & can also act as a sedative
Nicotine, the chemical that addicts people to tobacco, is a stimulant with properties similar to those of cocaine and amphetamine (speed). Nicotine provides the pick-me-up that smokers feel. It increases heart rate, blood pressure and breathing rate, and makes the smoker feel more alert. Unfortunately these effects wear off after 20 minutes or so and the smoker is left craving another pick-me-up.
Acetaldehyde, a by-product of both cigarette smoke and alcohol, has some sedative properties. The carbon monoxide in cigarettes makes you feel dull, the way you would in a stuffy room. These chemicals seem to calm some people’s feelings of tension, anger or strong emotion.
Other Psychological Effects
For many, the act of smoking, such as pausing in one’s work, lighting up, and exhaling a certain way becomes a comforting ritual in itself. Smoking may go hand in hand with other activities such as drinking coffee or alcohol or eating dessert. These “triggers” are why quitting smoking involves more than just kicking the nicotine habit.
The Force of Addiction
Sooner or later everyone who smokes does so to relieve the craving for nicotine, which is a powerfully addictive drug. The addicted body sends messages of uneasiness and need to the mind until the smoker gives in and lights up.
Understanding is Power
Take a close look at the feelings that make you want a cigarette and those that you have after you light up. Understanding these feelings will put you in charge when you are ready to quit smoking.
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