Smoking is a practice in which a substance, most commonly tobacco or cannabis, is burned and the smoke tasted or inhaled.

Smoking is one of the most common forms of recreational drug use. Tobacco smoking is today by far the most popular form of smoking and is practiced by over one billion people in the majority of all human societies. Less common drugs for smoking include cannabis and opium. Some of the substances are classified as hard narcotics, like heroin, but the use of these is very limited as they are often not commercially available.

Lung cancer risk - increases by 50-100% for each cigarette smoked Heart disease risks - increases by 100% for each pack of cigarettes smoked Switching to filter-tip cigarettes reduces the risk of lung cancer by 20%; risk of heart disease remains the same

Smokers spend 27% more time in hospital treatment and twice as much time in intensive care as compared to non-smokers
Each cigarette takes between 5-20 minutes off your life A smoker is twice at risk of dying before the age of sixtyfive

Skin Due to poor blood circulation and a

loss of oxygen the skin loses its luster and plumpness.

Mouth Bad breath, mouth cancer, sore

throat, reduced sense of taste, as well as stained teeth and plaque are the common effects of smoking.

Respiratory System - Lung cancer as well as

bronchitis, a constant shortness of breath and persistent cough with sputum are the common respiratory conditions you can get.

Bones Osteoporosis, spine and hip fractures,

and degenerative disc disease can all be traced back to smoking.

 Heart Many heart attacks can be traced to

smoking, which blocks and weakens the arteries and constricts blood vessels

Other body organs There are many

harmful effects of smoking on the human body which include cancers of the esophagus, abdomen, pancreas, kidneys, bladder and colon, in addition to blood diseases, decreased circulation to the feet and toes and difficulty recovering from wounds occur.

Secondhand smoke is also known as environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) or passive smoke. It is a mixture of 2 forms of smoke that come from burning tobacco: sidestream smoke (smoke that comes from the end of a lighted cigarette, pipe, or cigar) and mainstream smoke (smoke that is exhaled by a smoker). When non-smokers are exposed to secondhand smoke it is called involuntary smoking or passive smoking. Non-smokers who breathe in secondhand smoke take in nicotine and other toxic chemicals just like smokers do. The more secondhand smoke you are exposed to, the higher the level of these harmful chemicals in your body.

Effects of SECONDHAND SMOKE

Secondhand smoke can cause harm in many ways. In the United States alone, each year it is responsible for: An estimated 46,000 deaths from heart disease in nonsmokers who live with smokers About 3,400 lung cancer deaths in non-smoking adults Other breathing problems in non-smokers, including coughing, mucus, chest discomfort, and reduced lung function 50,000 to 300,000 lung infections (such as pneumonia and bronchitis) in children younger than 18 months of age, which result in 7,500 to 15,000 hospitalizations annually Increases in the number and severity of asthma attacks in about 200,000 to 1 million children who have asthma More than 750,000 middle ear infections in children Pregnant women exposed to secondhand smoke are also at increased risk of having low birth- weight b

The benefits of quitting

Within hours.......

8 hours 24 hours 48 hours

Nicotine and carbon monoxide levels halved, Blood oxygen levels return to normal
Carbon monoxide eliminated from the body

Nicotine eliminated from the body, Taste buds start to recover

Within months .......

1 month

Appearance improves skin loses greyish pallor, less wrinkled Regeneration of respiratory cilia starts Withdrawal symptoms have stopped Coughing and wheezing decline

3-9 months
5 years 10 years

Within years .......

The excess risk of a heart attack reduces by half The risk of lung cancer halved