What are the health risks of smoking cigarettes

When you smoke, you are causing your body irreparable damage. As every cigarette contains many toxic chemicals, it can be compared to living in a perpetual acid rain downpour. What would that feel like? Smoking causes various health problems because of the chemicals inhaled from the smoke.

The risk of smoking extends not only to you but also to others around you. It's also dangerous to breathe in second-hand smoke, so smoking also puts you and your loved ones at risk for medical complications. Kids who live in homes with both parents smoking are more likely to suffer from breathing problems.

Erectile Dysfunction Problems

If you're a man and think smoking can make you more masculine, then know that the opposite can be true. Recent studies show that smoking and erectile dysfunction often occur together and that the incidence of impotence almost doubles in smokers.

The effect of nicotine on your body is that it acts as a vasoconstrictor, constricting your blood vessels and arteries, thus restricting blood flow. Blood fills up the blood vessels in the penis, so any impediment to blood flow leads to a dissatisfying erection or none at all.

Nicotine use can also lead to a drop in testosterone. Because testosterone is the primary hormone that affects the male sex drive, a drop in testosterone cannot be healthy for your sexual drive.

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Illnesses of the lungs

When you smoke, you irritate the bronchial tubes, which leads to increased mucus production. As your body attempts to clean its lungs, smokers cough. In addition to being quite disgusting, it can lead to more serious problems if not addressed promptly.

You already know that smoking harms your lungs. Lung cancer, however, is not the only problem.

Cigarette smoking is also associated with chronic bronchitis and emphysema. You will feel short of breath whenever you exert yourself, even just slightly when you have emphysema, which is degenerative. As a result of chronic bronchitis, your lungs produce excessive mucus, making it more difficult for your lungs to absorb oxygen.

Stopping smoking is the first thing you should do when diagnosed with lung disease.

Different types of cancer

Due to a large number of chemicals present in cigarette smoke, smoking can cause cancer in various body parts.

Lung cancer is one of the most talked-about types of cancer caused by smoking. It is a known fact that the more you smoke, the increased your risk of lung cancer. Tobacco is responsible for 90% of male lung cancer deaths and 80% of female lung cancer deaths.

Furthermore, smoking is among the leading causes of mouth cancer. There's a chance that oral cancer will spread to your larynx and esophagus if you continue to smoke. Continued smoking will only quicken this process.

Around half of all male bladder and 30% of female bladder cancer-related deaths can be attributed to smoking. There are carcinogens in cigarette smoke that get into your bloodstream. Your kidneys filter them and then concentrate them in your urine. In your urine, these chemicals get into your bladder and damage it.

Reduction in physical performance

A smoker who smokes for a long time will run out of breath and get tired a lot easier. If you smoke, you lose fitness because it reduces your body's ability to get oxygen.

By smoking cigarettes, you would experience an increase in your airways' resistance and reduced oxygen delivery to your lungs. If you have carbon monoxide in your blood, your muscles won't get as much oxygen as they normally would since your blood would also have less oxygen coming from your lungs.

The effects of smoking on physical performance are well known. Smoking increases fatigue through exercise and hinders performance in sports and other activities.

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Higher Risk of Heart Diseases

There is no safe number of cigarettes you can puff on each day, and you are significantly more likely to suffer a heart attack if you continue to smoke. Despite this, the more you smoke, the greater your risk of heart disease.

Coronary heart disease is caused largely by smoking, so if you smoke, your chances of getting a heart attack go up 2 or 3. The chances are even higher if you have high blood pressure or cholesterol.

Inhaling cigarette smoke triggers several reactions in the heart and blood vessels. In the first ten minutes after starting to smoke, your heart rate jumps by 30%. When you smoke, your blood pressure rises, and constricted blood vessels force your heart to work harder to transport oxygen. Smoking also makes the blood less able to carry oxygen because of carbon monoxide.

The arteries that distribute blood to the brain are hardened by smoking, increasing the risk of stroke. Researchers have found that smokers are more likely to suffer from strokes (cerebral thrombosis) than non-smokers.

It makes You Look Older

Smoking causes your appearance to age more quickly. Smokers have long been known to have yellow teeth, yellow fingernails, and bad breath. In addition to damaging your skin, smoking also speeds up aging, causes hair loss, and even leads to baldness.

To sum up

The health risks associated with smoking cigarettes are enormous. Diseases associated with it can cause early death and result in a variety of health problems such as asthma, bronchitis, and emphysema, just to mention a few. If you smoke, it's important to quit as soon as possible to reduce your risk of developing these illnesses. Don't hesitate to ask for assistance if you need it, as many resources are available to help you.