What Does Smoking Do to Your Body?

It is a well known fact now that smoking is very harmful. It affects the body and mental functioning. It gives out a large number of chemicals through smoke as well as the tobacco contained in it. There are more than 4000 chemicals released, many of which are toxic and/or carcinogenic. Smoking is known to affect most organs and functions of the body, including heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, breathing, and blood pressure.

What does smoking do to your body?

Smoking affects and harms a very large number of body organs and functions. There is almost no organ or body function that remains completely unaffected by it. This is because when smoke is inhaled, it goes into the lungs from where it is absorbed by the blood which circulates it all over the body.

Lungs and the respiratory system

: This is the system that gets affected the most as it comes in direct contact with smoke and tobacco. It bears the brunt of the heat of burning cigarette, nicotine from tobacco and the large number of chemicals in cigarette smoke. Other than this, there are some other problems that affect this system.

• Bronchitis, asthma and emphysema
• Lung cancer
• Cancers of the mouth
• Chronic coughing
• Less oxygen in the body
• Damage to mucous glands

Heart and circulatory system

: This is another system that is badly affected by smoke and tobacco. Smoke and nicotine affect the blood vessels, that is, the arteries and veins that carry blood from and to the heart. These are some ailments that affect this system .

• Narrowing of blood vessels and blockages
• Clotting of blood
• Increased and irregular heart rate
• Palpitations
• Increased blood pressure
• Increased risk of strokes and heart attacks
• Decreased circulation to body extremities causing infections and disease, which can lead to amputation

Brain and nervous system

: They get affected mainly due to decreased oxygen supply to the brain which interferes with its normal functioning. Also, it affects delicate nerve endings due to improper blood supply, leading to sense problems. It can cause attention problems as well as problems with memory and retention.

Immune system:

This system gets affected as the toxins that enter the body through smoking affect the normal functioning of WBCs or white blood cells that are the main disease fighting cells of the body. This makes the body vulnerable to attack from external factors like virus, bacteria and other disease causing factors.

Reproductive system:

This system gets affected very adversely by smoking. It can lead to erectile dysfunction in men and impotency and sterility in both men and women. It can also cause many problems like early menopause in women and low birth weight of infants in pregnant women who smoke.

These are just some of the major problems that smoking can cause. There are many other small and big effects that smoking and tobacco have on the body. That is why it is best to stay away from cigarette smoking and tobacco. Apart from the above mentioned body functions, smoking can also be dangerous to the body in other ways. It is estimated that smoking causes about 350,000 deaths annually in the U.S.

Smoking Risks

• The risk of lung cancer increases manifold with each smoked cigarette.
• The risk of heart disease increases about 100 percent with each smoked cigarette pack.
• Filter-tip cigarettes do reduce lung cancer risk, but have no effect on heart disease risk.
• Smokers spend double the amount of time in hospital intensive care units, compared to non-smokers.
• Each smoked cigarette reduces the smoker’s life by five to 20 minutes.
• Smokers are twice as likely to die before they reach the age of 65 compared to non-smokers.

Smoking’s Effect on Eyes, Nose and Throat

When you smoke, irritating gases such as hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, formaldehyde and others start affecting your throat, nose and eyes. Your eyes can become watery and nose runny. The throat is irritated. As you continue to smoke, you will start to suffer from smoker’s cough. Menthol cigarettes only mask this perception, but they are equally dangerous. Regular smokers can face suffer severe throat problems including throat cancer.

Smoking Causes Morning Cough

In the morning, smokers usually wake up coughing. This is because the cilia in the bronchi tries to clear out the accumulated mucus in the air passages. This action throws up thick mucus, which generates coughing in the throat.

Blood Vessels

Smoking increases blood pressure, which puts stress on the blood vessels and heart. This increases the risk of stroke and heart attack. The body extremities may suffer from poor blood circulation. In severe cases, this factor can lead to amputation. Smoking also can cause blood clots inside the lungs.

Smoking and Skin

Smoking affects blood flow, which increases the risk of skin wrinkles. In fact, a condition called “smoker’s face” is common in regular smokers. This condition is characterized by grayish skin color, abnormal complexion, gaunt facial features and deep lines near the eyes and mouth.

Smoking and Blood

Cigarette smoke contains dangerous amounts of carbon monoxide. Therefore, smokers’ blood contains high levels of this chemical. This factor can trigger heart attacks. Smoking deprives the blood of oxygen and blood clotting also becomes more common. These factors increase the risk of stroke or heart attack.

Smoking Affects Fitness

Nicotine raises the heart rate, which makes the body crave for more oxygen. As a result, smokers are often out of breath. Carbon monoxide impacts oxygen supply to the brain, causing confusion, lethargy and even difficulties in thinking.

Smoking Impairs Smell and Taste

Regular smoking can affect your ability to smell and taste normally. As this occurs gradually, the smoker may not notice it. But in the long run, smokers suffer from reduced ability to taste and smell.