Did you know that smoking is the leading preventable cause of premature death
in the United States with about 480,000 deaths yearly? By 1964, it was official:
The U.S. Surgeon General confirmed that cigarette smoking causes lung cancer. But in the next few
decades that followed, we learned that smoking is responsible for a heap of other awful diseases.
Hi viewers and welcome back to Bestie! Within 10 seconds of your first puff,
the toxic chemicals in tobacco smoke reach your brain, heart and other organs. Smoking harms
almost every part of your body and increases your risk of many diseases. It also affects
how you look and feel, your finances and the people close to you. In today’s video,
we will tell you how smoking affects different parts of your body. From lungs, heart,
digestive system, eyes to immune system and more, watch till the end to learn about all of them.
Heart: Smoking damages the entire cardiovascular system. When nicotine hits the body, it causes
blood vessels to tighten, which restricts the flow of blood causing peripheral artery disease.
Smoking lowers good cholesterol levels and raises blood pressure.
This can result in stretching of the arteries and a buildup of bad cholesterol or atherosclerosis.
It also raises the risk of formation of blood clots which increases risk of heart attacks
and strokes. In the long term, smokers are at greater risk of blood cancer as well.
What physical activities get your heart rate up?
Tell us quickly down below in the comments section!
Lungs: Smoking damages the airways and small air sacs in your lungs.
This damage starts soon after someone starts smoking,
and lung function continues to worsen as long as the person smokes. Still, it may take
years for the problem to become noticeable enough for lung disease to be diagnosed.
Smoke damage in the lungs can lead to serious long-term lung diseases such as chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD. Smoking can also increase the risk of lung infections such as
pneumonia and tuberculosis, and it can worsen some existing lung diseases, such as asthma.
Fertility problems: Smoking cigarettes can damage a female’s reproductive system
and make it more difficult to get pregnant. This may be because
tobacco and the other chemicals in cigarettes affect hormone levels.
In males, the more cigarettes a person smokes and the longer they smoke, the higher the risk
of erectile dysfunction. It can also affect the quality of the sperm which reduces fertility.
Central nervous system: One of the ingredients in tobacco is a mood-altering drug called
nicotine. It reaches your brain in mere seconds and makes you feel more energized for a while.
But as that effect wears off, you feel tired and crave more.
Nicotine is extremely habit-forming, which is why people find smoking so difficult to quit.
Physical withdrawal from nicotine can impair your cognitive functioning and make you feel anxious,
irritated, and depressed. Withdrawal can also cause headaches and sleep problems.
Digestive system: Smoking increases the risk of mouth, throat, larynx, and esophagus cancer.
Smokers also have higher rates of pancreatic cancer. Even people who
“smoke but don’t inhale” face an increased risk of mouth cancer.
Smoking also has an effect on insulin, making it more likely that you’ll develop
insulin resistance. That puts you at increased risk of type 2 diabetes and its complications,
which tend to develop at a faster rate than in people who don’t smoke.
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Eyes: Smoking drastically affects your eyes. They may start drooping and become
watery. Additionally, your eye's ability to perceive objects is greatly reduced.
In addition, cigarette smoking also leads to some conditions related to loss of vision,
macular degeneration, glaucoma and various eye-related diseases.
It exposes the eyes to a dual threat which is internal as well as external.
When you smoke a cigarette, the smoke gathers into your eyes, and the exhaled smoke causes
further irritation to them. Additionally, smoking reduces the flow of blood to the eyes,
which further disables antioxidants from reaching the optic nerve.
Skin: The skin is the largest organ of the body. And, even it gets damaged due to smoking. It
damages the chemistry of the skin layers. So, a smoker looks older as compared to their peers.
Smoking is responsible for toughening of the skin, fine lines and wrinkles on the face.
It can also give you stretch marks on the body. These problems are caused due to dying
suppleness of the skin due to smoking.
As a matter of fact, smokers are highly prone to developing skin cancer as compared to non-smokers.
Smoking triggers other skin diseases such as psoriasis, skin warts, and poor wound healing.
Our skin is the body's first layer of defense against the attack of bacteria and viruses.
As per a study, people who smoke a packet of cigarettes every day
over a period of 20 years have a double risk of developing psoriasis.
Circulatory System: Smoking products contain many toxins which can damage our body.
These toxins are worse when combined along with cigarettes. They include carbon monoxide,
hydrogen cyanide, free radicals, and metals like lead, tar and radioactive compounds.
Carbon monoxide affects our blood directly by hindering
oxygen’s transportation to the organs. Free radicals increase your bad cholesterol levels.
When this happens, the blood vessels narrow down. For receiving
oxygen and the nutrients, all our major organs like brain,
heart, muscles and the tissues depend on proper circulation of blood. Other organs like the liver
also need proper circulation of blood for transporting the toxins out from the body.
Decreased circulation of blood causes hypertension, blood clots, increased heart rate,
and arterial wall buildup along with lowered body temperature. Additionally lower blood circulation
can lead to problems in your fingers and toes; so amputation may be needed in serious cases.
Ear And Mouth: Smoking takes a toll on your mouth. Smokers have more oral
health problems than non-smokers, like mouth sores, ulcers and gum disease.
You are more likely to have cavities and lose your teeth at a younger age.
You are also more likely to get cancers of the mouth and throat.
Smoking also reduces the oxygen supply to the cochlea, a snail-shaped organ in the inner ear.
This can result in permanent damage to the cochlea and mild to moderate hearing loss.
Belly: Smokers have bigger bellies and less muscle than non-smokers. As a smoker,
you are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, even if you don’t smoke every day.
Smoking also makes it harder to control diabetes once you already have it. Diabetes is a serious
disease that can lead to blindness, heart disease, kidney failure, and amputations.
Cancer: Your body is made up of cells that contain genetic material,
or DNA. These act as an instruction manual for cell growth and function. Every single puff of a
cigarette causes damage to your DNA. When DNA is damaged, the instruction manual gets messed up,
and the cell can begin growing out of control and create a cancer tumor.
Your body tries to repair the damage that smoking does to your DNA.
But over time, smoking can wear down this repair system
and lead to cancer of the lungs. One-third of all cancer deaths are caused by tobacco.
Cancer is a deadly disease which starts showing signs at an early stage.
Learn more about these signs by watching “8 Common Cancer Signs That Are Almost Always Ignored”
Now, back to Here’s How Smoking Affects Different Organs Of Your Body
Fatty Deposits: Smoking increases the cholesterol and unhealthy fats circulating in the blood,
leading to unhealthy fatty deposits. Over time,
cholesterol, fats, and other debris build up on the walls of your arteries.
This buildup narrows the arteries and blocks normal blood flow to the heart,
brain, and legs. Blocked blood flow to the heart or brain can cause a heart attack or stroke.
Blockage in the blood vessels of your legs could result in the amputation of your toes or feet.
Muscles And Bones: When you smoke, less blood and oxygen flow to your muscles.
This makes it harder to build muscles. The lack of oxygen also makes muscles tire more easily.
Smokers have more muscle aches and pains than non-smokers.
Ingredients in cigarette smoke disrupt the natural cycle of bone health.
Your body is less able to form healthy new bone tissue, and it breaks down
existing bone tissue more rapidly. Over time, smoking leads to a thinning of bone tissue
and loss of bone density. This causes bones to become weak and brittle. Compared to non-smokers,
smokers have a higher risk of bone fractures, and their broken bones take longer to heal.
Immune System: When you smoke, the number of white blood cells in your body stays high. This is a
sign that your body is under stress—constantly fighting against the inflammation and damage
caused by tobacco. A high white blood cell count is like a signal from your body,
letting you know you’ve been injured. When it stays elevated for a long time,
it increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes, and cancer.
Cigarette smoke contains high levels of tar and other chemicals, which can make your immune system
less effective at fighting off infections. This means you’re more likely to get sick. Continued
weakening of the immune system can make you more vulnerable to autoimmune diseases, like rheumatoid
arthritis and multiple sclerosis. It also decreases your body’s ability to fight off cancer.
Because smoking causes your blood vessels to tighten, it decreases levels of nutrients
supplied to wounds. As a result, wounds take longer to heal. Slow wound healing
increases the risk of infection after an injury or surgery and painful skin
ulcers can develop, causing the tissue to slowly die.
One of the worst affected organs because of smoking are your lungs.
Learn more about how you can take care of them by watching:
19 Foods That Improve Unhealthy Lungs And Help You Breathe Easy
Or
10 Ways You Can Reverse Lung Damage
So go ahead and watch one or both of these videos for maximum benefits.
Do you smoke? Have you ever tried giving it up? Let us know in the comments section below!