Posted on January 17, 2008 in Latest News
Smoking is an important indicator of life expectancy and the quality of life. Along with causing many life-threatening diseases it also accelerates the process of aging. Discover more about smoking and aging, here.
Smoking speeds up the aging process. Smokers generally look much older for their age. Researchers have established that a smoker in his 30s look as old as a nonsmoker in his 50s.
Why Smoking Accelerates Aging
- Cigarette smoke release a chemical called, ‘acetaldehyde’ that causes aging, especially of the skin. Acetaldehyde affects the cross-linking bonds of the tissues. These cross-linking bonds hold our tissues together.
- Smoking picks up the pace of the enzymes which break down the collagen and elastin. Collagen and elastin are the fibers that keep your skin compact and youthful. Smoking also depletes Vitamin C which is highly required for the synthesis of collagen.
- Smoking restricts the blood vessels. This in turn slows down the blood flow to your skin.
- Smoking deprives your skin of oxygen and essential nutrients.
- Smoke releases radiation which is a strong aging factor. A smoker who smokes one and a half packs of cigarette per day is exposed to radiation which is equal to 300 chest x-rays a year.
Symptoms of Aging due to Smoking
- Smoking speeds up the process of aging. This is noticeable on the skin because the skin sags and wrinkles prematurely due to smoking.
- Smoking makes the skin lifeless. The skin looks dry, old, tired and unhealthy due to smoking.
- Facial wrinkles develop due to smoking.
- Smoking leads to the development of ‘smoker’s face’. People with ‘smoker’s face’ look older than what their actual age is. Researchers have found that ‘smoker’s face’ develop among people who smoke for ten years or more. The researchers also pointed out that around half of the smokers have ‘smoker’s face’ irrespective of their age, social class, and estimated consumption of cigarettes throughout their life.
- Smoking causes premature thinning and graying of the hair. Smokers have twice the risk of becoming bald as compared to the non-smokers.
- Smoking discolors the teeth.
- Smoking leads to the formation of wrinkles around the lips of the smokers. The action of sucking on cigarettes on a regular basis causes the formation of wrinkles around the lips.
- Smokers have more frown lines because they often look through the smoke haze that they expel in front of their eyes.
Remedy
- Smoking withdrawal is the first and foremost step to look youthful. Giving up smoking improves your overall health. It also increases your life expectancy. Quitting smoking also stops the speed of the aging process. To some extent, smoking cessation reverse the trend of aging process.
- Using various kinds of anti-aging processes such as skin treatments, teeth whitening procedures and so on can help you to look much younger than your age.
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