Almost every smoker has heard just how bad smoking is for them, and almost all believe it. Many try to quit multiple times, but unfortunately a significant number fail.
Individuals who are not at the point they feel they can quit smoking are still concerned about the damage that smoking is doing to their lungs.how does smoking affect the body
There is of course also the possible damage to the health of those who are around them. Some smokers like me, decide to take a harm reduction approach and switch to e- cigarettes to help reduce the damage to our bodies until quit day finally comes. However, even smokers may be surprised to learn what smoking actually does to every system in the human body.
Let’s explore this a little further because although health officials emphasize the dangers to the heart and lungs, the damage from smoking cigarettes is actually systemic.
Smokers have a higher risk of gum mouth and throat cancer because the mouth is the entry point for all the carcinogens contained in tobacco smoke.
Teeth are stained due to the tars in tobacco.
Smokers suffer from damaged bronchi and alveoli resulting in emphysema, chronic pulmonary disorder or cancer of the lungs. One of the thousands of chemicals ingested while smoking is Hydrogen Cyanide.
Smokers are also subject to more headaches and an increased risk of stroke due to the constricted blood flow to the brain and high blood pressure.
Carbon monoxide from smoking cigarettes decreases the oxygen levels in the blood and is also known to contribute to high cholesterol which in turn can lead to strokes.
Smoking actually increases stomach acids and can result in poor digestion, ulcers or heartburn.
Because cigarette smoke contains more than just the carcinogen nicotine, these harmful toxins are processed by the liver and kidneys and consequently released in urine. Carcinogens in urine are felt to contribute to bladder cancer.
This is just a very brief explanation of how smoking affects the body and the list of harmful consequences is by no means complete. Nicotine is the addictive substance in cigarettes but it is not the only harmful or carcinogenic substance ingested by the average smoker. The tars and byproducts of burning tobacco can do as much damage or even more to the human body than nicotine alone.
This is not intended to be yet another “stop now or die” sermon about smoking. Instead it is simply an education to the somewhat overlooked facts of what cigarette smoking does to the human body. However these harmful effects are some of the reasons people have switched to vaping.
I should clarify this statement though. If you can quit smoking, and you feel you need to quit, then you should do so right now. Millions of smokers either do not feel they can at this time, or they do not wish to quit yet. If that is the case, then you may wish to look toward harm reduction strategies such as e cigarettes.