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Smoking & health
7000 people die every year in Ireland due to smoking and it's the main cause of lung cancers.
Article by : SpunOut.ie
Let’s start with a look at what’s in cigarettes. Tobacco smoke contains about 4000 chemicals and many of them are harmful.
These include:
- Nicotine: an addictive drug that affects the brain.
- Tar: this forms when tobacco cools down. It collects in your lungs and can cause cancer.
- Carbon monoxide: a gas released from burning tobacco. When you inhale cigarette smoke it enters the blood stream and causes trouble for your heart and blood vessels. A smoker’s blood can have up to 15% carbon monoxide instead of oxygen.
- Other dangerous chemicals found in cigarettes are arsenic (poison), ammonia (toilet cleaner), acetone (nail polish remover), butane (lighter fuel), methanol (rocket fuel), DDT (insecticide), polonium 210 (radioactive fallout) and cadium (car battery fuel).
With so many chemicals, you can imagine that cigarettes aren’t exactly good for our bodies.
What smoking does to your body:
In the short term
- Smoking gives you bad breath.
- Causes wrinkles earlier in life.
- Makes your hair and clothes smell.
- Can affect your sports performance - you won't be able to run as fast or as far.
- Stains your teeth and makes your skin dry
- Crease your lips from pursing them around the cigarette.
- Makes your skin tougher and not as soft.
- Mixes up the fluids in your brain.
In the long term
- Smokers lose around 10 or 15 years of their potential life span.
- Smoking can cause Coronary Heart Disease.
- Emphysema
- Lung Cancer
- Throat Cancer
- Mouth Cancer
- Bladder Cancer
- Infertility in men and women
- Stomach Ulcers
Why do people smoke?
- Some people smoke because they think it's cool but smoking stains your teeth and fingers, it makes your breath stink and the smell lingers on your clothes and hair. It's bad for your skin and complexion. So to smell better and look better, you know what to do!
- Some people smoke because they think it'll dull their appetite, sorry folks but smoking wont help you loose weight! You won't necessarily put on weight if you give up smoking either. People may turn to food when they're trying to give up smoking but all you have to do is choose healthy snacks and find something active to do instead of having a drag.
- Some people think that it calms their nerves, sorry that's another myth! Smoking just helps you deal with the withdrawal symptoms you feel because you are addicted to nicotine. Smoking doesn't relieve stress at all.
Contact the National Smokers’ Quitline on CallSave 1850 201 203 for confidential advice on quitting, a free information pack, and referral to local quit smoking services.
Find out about how to quit smoking.
Some content thanks to YouthHealthNE authors.
See the help section for supportive information and contacts details of support organisations.
