12 Questions a Smoker Must Be Aware Of

All these tobacco products, which can be used in the forms of inhalation (cigarette, cigar, pipe), aspiration (snuff) and chewing, are harmful to health. Over 4,700 toxic substances enter our body during the consumption of these products. It includes nicotine (responsible for addiction), carbon monoxide (same poisonous exhaust gas leaving the car) and tar. Tar consists of approximately 48 harmful substances such as pesticides and radioactive substances (responsible for cancer)

Cigarette smoke has a gaseous phase and a particulate phase. The gaseous phase consists of carbon monoxide, ammonia, ketone, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde and acrolein, among other substances.Some produce irritation to the eyes, nose, throat and lead to paralysis of the cilia of the bronchial wall. The particulate phase contains nicotine and tar, which contains 48 carcinogens, including arsenic, nickel, benzopyrene, cadmium, lead, and residues of pesticides applied in agricultural products and radioactive substances.

Nicotine, which is found in all tobacco products (cigars, pipes, hand-rolled cigarettes, etc.) is the drug that causes addiction. This substance is psychoactive, ie, produces the sensation of pleasure, which may lead to abuse and dependence. Nicotine, when ingested produces changes in the central nervous system, thereby modifying the emotional and behavioral status of individuals in the same way as with cocaine, heroin and alcohol.

Once nicotine reaches the brain, it releases various substances (neurotransmitters) that are responsible for stimulating the feeling of pleasure (accubens core), which explains the good feeling that the smoker feel. With continuous intake of nicotine, the brain adapts and begins to need increasing doses to maintain the same level of satisfaction that he had at the beginning.

This effect is called tolerance to the drug. Over time, the smoker becomes increasingly needy. Such that if the average number of cigarettes smoked during adolescence is 10 per day in adulthood rises to 20 cigarettes per day after a few years.

As a result of advertising aimed primarily at young people which provide a false impression that smoking is associated with good sexual and athletic performance, success, beauty, independence and freedom. Most smokers become addicted to nicotine before 19 years of age.

Smoking is directly responsible for 30% of all cancer deaths, 90% of deaths from lung cancer, 25% of deaths from coronary disease, 85% of deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and 25% of deaths from cerebrovascular disease. Other diseases related to tobacco are arterial aneurysm, vascular thrombosis, ulcers of the digestive system, respiratory infections and sexual impotence in men.

Smokers get sick twice as often as nonsmokers. Have less stamina, less breathing capacity and worse performance in sports and sex life than nonsmokers. Besides they age faster and have a less attractive physical appearance.

A pregnant woman who smokes, has the risk of miscarriage, have a greater chance of having children with low birth weight, smaller size and birth defects. The children of smokers get sick twice more than the children of nonsmokers.

Entire forests are cut down to feed the wood burning ovens that dry the tobacco leaves before being industrialized. For every 300 cigarettes produced a tree is burned. C igarette filters thrown in lakes, rivers, seas, forests and gardens takes 100 years to degrade. About 25% of all fires are caused by burning cigarette butts, which results in destruction and death.

According to the World Bank, tobacco consumption generates a global loss of 200 billion dollars per year, represented by:

• overload the healthcare system with treatment of diseases caused by smoking
• deaths of citizens of working age
• higher rate of early retirement
• absenteeism become 33-45% more
• lower performance at work• spending more on insurance
• more cleaning costs, equiment maintenance and replacement of securities
• greater losses to fires
• reduced quality of life of the smoker and his family.

It is the inhalation of tobacco smoke by nonsmokers who live with smokers indoors. Today it is estimated that secondhand smoke is the 3rd leading cause of preventable death in the world, subsequent to active smoking and excessive consumption of alcohol .

Nonsmokers who breathe tobacco smoke have a higher risk of developing smoking-related diseases. The longer the time in which the non smoker is exposed to environmental tobacco smoke, the greater the chance of getting sick. The children, having a higher respiratory rate suffer drastic consequences on their health, including bronchitis and pneumonia, asthma and middle ear infections.

No. Although good ventilation can help reduce eye irritation caused by the smoke, it does not eliminate their toxic components. When smokers and nonsmokers share the same ventilation system, the smoke is dispersed throughout the area, it circulates through the pipes of central cooling systems. The smoking areas (designated facilities) can only help to protect the health of non-smokers when they are completely isolated, with separate ventilation system, not allowing the polluted air to circulate through the building.