Why Is Smoking So Dangerous To Your Health?

 
 

Quitting smoking at any age improves the quality of life of people and reduces the occurrence of respiratory, cardiovascular and various types of cancer.

The benefits of quitting smoking are beginning to be perceived immediately from the first minutes and hours in that a cigarette is not lit again.

Why Is It Difficult To Stop Smoking?

It also produces tolerance, an accustoming of the organism to the substance that leads to require new or larger doses to obtain the same effect. That is why the daily nicotine cycle is reinforced with nocturnal withdrawal. People who smoke say that "the first cigarettes of tomorrow are the best". That same effect can lead to nausea or dizziness after several days without smoking when trying the tobacco again.

Magnitude Of The Problem In the world

Smoking is the leading cause of preventable deaths in the world. Tobacco use causes more than 5 million deaths per year worldwide. Current trends show that tobacco use will cause more than 8 million deaths annually by 2030. ... Globally, smoking related-diseases kills 1 in 10 adults.[1]

What Damage Does Tobacco Produce?
 
The harmful effect of cigarettes is given by the thousands of substances present in tobacco smoke, of which about 60 are carcinogenic and capable of inducing lung damage, in addition to vascular disease.

The people affected are not only smokers but also those who live with them or breathe in the same environments the smoke of other people's tobacco. The damage it produces in different organs and body systems, such as:

• Cardiovascular disease (coronary and cerebrovascular disease, peripheral cardiovascular disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm)
• Respiratory disease (from mild obstruction and reduced lung capacity to high risk of COPD) 
• Cancer of different types, especially lung 
• Aesthetic skin problems and healing 
• Dental complications (stains on teeth, tooth decay, halitosis, periodontal disease, leukoplakias, and cancer) 
• Problems in pregnancy
  

This helps to warn that they do not reach information, health education or medical advice or prescription to reduce the incidence of smoking.

It Is Not Just A Will Problem
 
Given the complexity of smoking as an issue that exceeds the health field, the best way to contribute to reducing the damage it causes to the population's health is from public policies that are implemented for the care of the entire population, smoker or not, and In addition, avoid the initiation of habit in young people.

The objectives of this law are:

• Reduce the consumption of tobacco products and exposure to the harmful effects of cigarette smoke.
• Reduce the health and environmental damage caused by tobacco. 
• Prevent smoking initiation especially in children and adolescents
  

The Most Important Aspects Of The Law Are:

• The prohibition of smoking in all enclosed spaces for public or private use. Only courtyards, terraces, balconies, and other outdoor areas are exempted from this prohibition, except in schools and health services, where smoking is not permitted in courtyards
• The prohibition of advertising, promotion, and sponsorship of cigarettes or products made with tobacco in the media and also on public roads 
• The obligation to include health warnings with images on the packaging 
• The operation of a free smoking cessation advice line 
• The prohibition of the sale to children under 18 years, so the sale of loose cigarettes is also prohibited, in bundles of less than ten units and through vending machines 
• The prohibition of the sale of cigarettes in schools, hospitals, public buildings, means of transport, museums, clubs or public entertainment venues, such as theaters, cinemas or sports stadiums
  

Leaving Smoking Reduces The Possibility Of Sicking And Improves Life Expectation

• After 8 hours of the last cigarette smoked, the levels of nicotine and carbon monoxide are reduced by half and the oxygen returns to normal values.
• In 24 hours nicotine and carbon monoxide are removed from the body.
• In 3 months the improvement of lung function is evident, with a marked decrease in cough, nasal congestion, fatigue, and dyspnea.
  
• After one year of quitting smoking, the risk of cardiovascular disease is reduced by half and over the years it continues to decrease.
• After 10 years the risk of lung cancer is also reduced.
• At 15 years of quitting smoking the risk of cerebral infarction is equal to that of people who never smoked.