Health hazards associated with smoking.

Smoking is one of the major of death and illness in the UK. Yearly about 100,000 people die from smoking, with many more deaths caused by smoking-related illnesses. Smoking increases your risk of developing more than 50 serious health conditions. Some may be fatal and others can cause irreversible long-term damage to your health.

The sad thing about it is that the health of people around the smoker is also at risk (passive smoking, or secondhand smoke). We hope this series of articles on smoking would make readers with the habit think twice before pulling out another stick. It would also educate/ remind non-smokers of the health implications of second hand smoking. first let us look at the risks associated with smoking.

Health risks

1.  Smoking causes about 90% of lung cancers:  It also causes cancer in many other parts of the    body, including the mouth lips, throat, voice box (larynx), oesophagus (the tube between your mouth and stomach), bladder, kidney, liver, stomach and pancreas.

2. Smoking damages your heart and your blood circulation, increasing your risk of developing conditions such as:

·         Heart attack

·         stroke

·         peripheral vascular disease (damaged blood vessels)

·         cerebrovascular disease (damaged arteries that supply blood to your brain)

·         Raised blood pressure and heart rate

·         Constriction (tightening) of blood vessels in the skin, resulting in a drop in skin temperature

·         Less oxygen carried by the blood

·         ‘Stickier’ blood, which is more prone to clotting

·         Damage to the lining of the arteries, which is thought to be a contributing factor to atherosclerosis (the build-up of fatty deposits on the artery walls)

·         Reduced blood flow to extremities (fingers and toes)

·         Increased risk of stroke and heart attack due to blockages of the blood supply.

3. Smoking damages your lungs: smokers are at high risk of suffering from the following lungs conditions

·         chronic bronchitis (infection of the main airways in the lungs)

·         emphysema (damage to the small airways in the lungs)

·         pneumonia (inflammation in the lungs) 

      4. Prolongs or worsens symptoms of respiratory conditions: Smoking can worsen or prolong the symptoms of respiratory conditions such as asthma, or respiratory tract infections such as the common cold. 

      5. Effect on fertility: The effects of tobacco smoke on the male body include:

·Lower sperm count

·Higher percentage of deformed sperm

·Genetic damage to sperm

·Impotence, which may be due to the effects of smoking on blood flow and damage to the blood vessels of the penis.

The effects of tobacco smoke on the female body include:

·Reduced fertility

·Menstrual cycle irregularities or absence of menstruation

·Menopause reached one or two years earlier

·Increase risk of cervical cancer

6.  Effects of smoking on the immune system: The effects of tobacco smoke on the immune system include:

• Greater susceptibility to infections such as pneumonia and influenza
• More severe and longer-lasting illnesses
• Lower levels of protective antioxidants (such as vitamin C), in the blood.

7.  Other effects:

• Irritation and inflammation of the stomach and intestines
• Increased risk of painful ulcers along the digestive tract
• Reduced ability to smell and taste
• Premature wrinkling of the skin
• Higher risk of blindness
• Gum disease (periodontitis).
• Tightening of certain muscles
• Reduced bone density.

Secondhand smoke

Secondhand smoke comes from the tip of a lit cigarette and the smoke that the smoker breathes out.
People who breathe in secondhand smoke are at risk of getting the same health conditions as smokers, particularly lung cancer and heart disease. For example, breathing in secondhand smoke increases a non-smoker's risk of developing lung cancer or heart disease by about 25%.
A child who is exposed to smoke (secondhand smoking) is at increased risk of developing respiratory infections, a chronic cough and, if they have asthma
, their symptoms will get worse. They're also at increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and glue ear.

Smoking during pregnancy

If you smoke when you're pregnant, you put your unborn baby's health at risk, as well as your own. Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of complications such as:

• miscarriage 
• premature (early) birth
• a low birth weight baby
• stillbirth 
• Increased risk of cleft palate and cleft lip
• Paternal smoking can also harm the fetus if the non-smoking mother is exposed to second-hand smoke.

If a parent continues to smoke during their baby’s first year of life, the child has an increased risk of ear infections, respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia and bronchitis, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and meningococcal disease.

What about smokeless tobacco:

Smokeless tobacco is tobacco that is not burned. It includes chewing tobacco, dip, snuff, and betel quid. At least 28 chemicals in these products have been found to cause cancer, including:

• Esophageal cancer
• Mouth cancer
• Pancreatic cancer

Betel quid is a combination of betel leaf, areca nut, and slaked lime. Like other smokeless tobacco products, betel quid and gutka are known to cause:

• Esophageal cancer
• Lip cancer
• Mouth cancer
• Pharynx cancer
• Tongue cancer

Smokeless tobacco also causes

·         Tooth decay in exposed tooth roots.

·         gums to pull away from your teeth( If this happens, the gums will not grow back)

·         leathery white patches and red sores (Those patches and sores can turn into cancer).

source: http://www.nhs.uk