Harm of smoking for the human body. Harm of smoking, dangerous consequences What are the social and psychological causes of smoking
Smoking is one of the most harmful habits not only among young people, but also among the elderly. Many smokers do not think about the dangers of cigarettes, but smoking has a very significant effect on our health and life expectancy.
Smoking is the inhalation of smoke from the combustion of dry plant leaves. Columbus once rendered an invaluable service to Europeans by bringing tobacco to Europe. And if then only a select few were allowed to smoke, today many people are subject to this addiction: not only men and women, today smoking boys and girls, teenagers are not uncommon, and many begin to smoke in early childhood. Smoking people can be found everywhere and on the street and in the entrances, and near schools and playgrounds. There is an opinion among specialists that on a planetary scale today there are two reasons that contribute to an increase in the mortality rate: HIV infection and tobacco smoking.
After I completely quit smoking, I no longer have a gloomy and anxious mood. Habit is a tyrant of people! (Shakespeare)
Today, you will not surprise anyone with the message that smoking is detrimental to health. Labels on cigarette packages that inform consumers about the possible consequences of tobacco use do not reduce the number of people who buy coveted cigarettes. Smokers hear every day about the dangers of smoking, read terrible inscriptions promising a quick loss of health on packs, and regularly listen to the indignant exclamations of non-smokers. But, nevertheless, continue to smoke. How to explain it? Maybe just words about the dangers of smoking are not enough.
What does smoking lead to?
I must say, scientists have studied in detail the components of tobacco smoke. A huge number of elements that are harmful to the health of a smoker have been identified. Many of these components begin their destructive action almost immediately after entering the body. These include nicotine and carbon monoxide. Others gradually accumulate in order to then deliver their destructive blow - polonium 210, benzanthracene, benzene, vinyl chloride. These substances are carcinogens - they cause cancer of the lungs, liver, stomach, tongue, laryngopharynx. Carbon monoxide, interacting with blood hemoglobin, disrupts its transport function. The tissues of the human body suffer from hypoxia.
Smoking is dangerous at any age, in adolescence it is even more detrimental. Smoking causes irreparable harm to the body, reducing its performance, affecting memory, worsening the taste, smell and color perception of the world. When smoking, the activity of various glands of the body, including the thyroid gland, is disrupted. Teenagers who smoke have more pronounced skin problems, such as boils or pimples, and slow growth and development. The main problem of teenagers who smoke is that while they are young and strong, they do not think about their health. Scientists have identified a pattern that people who started smoking in adolescence have worse health than those who started smoking in adulthood. Moreover, those who are addicted to smoking during adolescence tend to smoke for the rest of their lives.
It is a very sad fact that the number of smoking girls and women is growing every year. It should be noted that in about a couple of years it will be quite easy to distinguish a smoking lady from a non-smoker, even without using special devices. A smoking lady will be given out by a smoky rough voice, dull, gray skin, early wrinkles around the eyes, the smell of tobacco coming from a woman. The main changes that occur in the body are often carefully hidden from view. Women who smoke are more likely to experience menstrual irregularities, infertility, and early onset of menopause.
Pregnant smokers who have not been able to give up tobacco cause even more misunderstanding among others. Most likely, they do not think about the harm caused to their unborn child by smoking. In such women, the percentage of stillborn children is much higher than in non-smokers. Nicotine that passes through the placenta into the blood of the fetus accumulates there and the concentration of nicotine in the baby's body exceeds the concentration in the mother's body. Nicotine causes oxygen starvation of the cells of the developing fetus. Smoking and failure to self-control this habit can lead to premature birth of a child. Children of smoking mothers, as a rule, are born much weaker than those of non-smokers. In addition, they are prone to various congenital pathologies.
It is also better for nursing mothers to give up addiction. The baby not only inhales the nicotine coming from the mother, he also receives the lion's share of nicotine with her milk. Having examined the milk of smoking mothers, scientists have proved that a liter of such milk contains 0.5 mg of a lethal dose that can kill a baby.
People suffering from problems with the respiratory and circulatory systems should also stop smoking. Nicotine leads to the fact that the heartbeat quickens, the vessels spasm. Scientists have found that in general, people who have had a stroke or myocardial infarction at a young age are chain smokers.
And of course, it is impossible not to notice that smokers cause irreparable harm not only to their health, but also to the people around them. People who are close to a smoker are also smokers, only passive and suffer from this habit much more. Such smoking is especially dangerous for expectant and nursing mothers, the elderly and adolescents, as well as for those who suffer from chronic diseases of the heart, blood vessels and respiratory system.
Tobacco is the cheapest, most “soft” drug, the severe consequences of which are not immediately noticeable, but manifest themselves in a more or less distant future, which creates the illusion of its harmlessness. (V. Bakhur)
Today I want to tell you about a no less harmless habit - smoking. Of course, the harm caused by nicotine is less dangerous than alcohol, but nonetheless. A drug is a drug.
Most smokers perceive nicotine addiction as a harmless habit that helps to relax or cheer up, to keep themselves busy in moments of waiting or to become an excuse for a joint smoke break.
However, statistics compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO) indicate high morbidity and mortality due to addiction. According to statistics, smoking cigarettes tenfold increases the risk of bronchitis, emphysema, coronary heart disease, respiratory cancer, and this is not a complete list. In Russia, more than 300 thousand people die every year from nicotine addiction. The harm of smoking on the human body has been proven by many scientists of the world and does not raise doubts among doctors. So why don't more than 1.3 billion of the world's population quit smoking?
Composition of tobacco smoke
In recent years, the Ministry of Health has ensured that the deadly harm of tobacco to human health is indicated on packs of cigarettes. Before taking a puff, a person must know the truthful information and make a choice in favor of or quitting smoking. More than 3,000 chemicals are known to be in each cigarette. The most hazardous to health are nicotine, carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, tar, benzene, formaldehyde.
Nicotine is perhaps the most well-known component in tobacco and tobacco smoke. It is he who is responsible for the painful addiction to cigarettes, which means that he is a narcotic substance. Dependence on nicotine is on the same level as addiction to alcohol, cocaine, heroin. This chemical disrupts metabolic processes in tissues, leads to vasospasm and slows down microcirculation, and changes the bioelectrical activity of the brain.
Carbon monoxide displaces oxygen from red blood cells, which leads to its shortage in organs and tissues - hypoxia. As a result, diseases develop in all body systems. Hydrogen cyanide belongs to the group of highly toxic substances. It destroys the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract, eyes, digestive tract. It has a general intoxication, which causes headache, vomiting, shortness of breath, palpitations.
Tar is a resinous compound that turns smoker's fingers and teeth yellow. In addition, it is the main cause of the formation of cancer of the larynx and lungs. Formaldehyde also has a carcinogenic effect, destroys lung tissue, reduces its elastic properties. Benzene is highly active, affects all organs and systems, several times increases the risk of leukemia.
The effect of smoking on the body
As a result of nicotine addiction, human health is gradually deteriorating. As a result, compensatory (protective) mechanisms weaken and diseases arise from all body systems. First of all, the respiratory tract, the heart and blood vessels, and the brain suffer.
Harmful effect on the respiratory system
The respiratory tract becomes the conductor of tobacco smoke into the body. As a result of chronic smoking, the mucous membrane of the larynx, trachea, bronchi dries up and eventually atrophies, loses its physiological properties. The ciliated epithelium that lines the airways and cleans the bronchi from mucus, dust particles, and bacteria is destroyed. This leads to inflammatory processes - laryngitis, tracheitis, bronchitis. Everyone knows chronic cough in people with nicotine addiction, which occurs mainly in the morning, the so-called smoker's bronchitis.
A long smoking experience for more than 5-10 years weakens the elastic properties of the lung tissue, which determine the maintenance of normal gas exchange during physical exertion. As a result, the ventilation function of the lungs decreases, shortness of breath appears, tissue hypoxia develops. Chronic smokers are 5 times more likely to suffer from emphysema and malignant neoplasms of the larynx, bronchi, and lungs. A decrease in local immunity causes a high incidence of respiratory colds and influenza.
Harmful effect on the cardiovascular system
Nicotine addiction negatively affects the functioning of the heart and blood vessels. The myocardium is a powerful muscle that pumps hundreds of liters of blood per day throughout a person's life. For its normal operation, energy is required, the formation of which occurs with a sufficient supply of oxygen. Smoking through the negative effects of carbon monoxide causes chronic hypoxemia - insufficient oxygen in the blood and, consequently, its deficiency in all tissues of the body.
Nicotine and tar in the composition of tobacco cause spasm of arterial vessels, impair microcirculation, and increase blood pressure. This aggravates the work of the heart, especially in conditions of energy starvation. In addition, toxic substances in cigarette smoke disrupt lipid metabolism and increase blood viscosity. This leads to an increase in cholesterol, the formation of atherosclerotic plaques and blood clots in the vessels, which increases the risk of developing myocardial infarction, pulmonary infarction, cerebral stroke, and thromboembolism of the pulmonary artery system.
Harmful effect on the nervous system
Highly specialized brain cells are sensitive to any toxic substances, including tobacco smoke. Nicotine and tar reach the brain within 7 seconds after the first puff. They cause primary excitation of neurons followed by a long period of inhibition. This slows down the bioelectrical activity of the brain, which is accompanied by a deterioration in mental activity, memory loss, absent-mindedness, and a decrease in intellectual abilities.
Nicotine promotes spasm of cerebral vessels, deterioration of blood flow in brain tissues, insufficient supply of oxygen and nutrients. There are headaches, impaired visual acuity, fatigue, irritability, drowsiness. Tobacco smoke negatively affects the peripheral nervous system, slowing down the conduction of nerve impulses from the central sections to the periphery. Polyneuritis, radiculitis, polyneuropathy appear, leading to pain along the nerve trunks, decreased sensitivity and impaired motor activity.
The negative impact of tobacco addiction causes severe chronic diseases and reduces life expectancy by an average of 10-15 years. Giving up bad habits will help keep yourself and those around you feeling great. It has also been proven that passive smoke inhalation is no less harmful than active tobacco smoking.
The harm of smoking is obvious, and today the government is trying to fight this evil. Whether this is right or not is debatable. I believe that any violent method, when forced to quit by hard methods, leads to the opposite reaction. So it was with alcohol, and so it will be with smoking. What's the point, for example, that they banned smoking on trains. Recently traveled by rail to another city. That's horrible. Now smokers just close themselves in the toilets and smoke their nasty cigarettes there. You follow them into the toilet, and, being there, you immediately smell of tobacco smoke.
You can't force an adult to stop smoking. He must do it himself, according to his needs. It also helps to promote the dangers of smoking and raising the price of cigarettes. My friend just gave up this bad habit only because it became unprofitable for him to buy cigarettes. If a person is smart and thinking, he will understand that smoking drives him to the grave, and will be able to overcome the craving for cigarettes by quitting smoking once and for all. Of course, he will have to go through a crisis, withdrawal, and maybe even a painful and inadequate reaction of the body. For many, this is very difficult. The body adapted to the poison for a long time, rebuilt itself, and here, after throwing it, it is necessary to change the established balance again. And it will be a long time before he becomes healthy again. It all depends on how long you've been smoking. How to quit smoking and overcome the crisis, I will tell you in my subsequent posts. Do not miss.
There must be some incentive for a person to realize and tell himself that everything needs to be thrown. For some, such an incentive may be getting rid of a disease that threatens the life of a smoker, and only a complete cessation of cigarettes can stop the disease.
I believe that the most productive method of combating smoking is propaganda that the smoker, as well as the alcoholic, as a result of addiction to these drugs (and alcohol and nicotine is a drug) becomes a weak, sick and worthless person who degrades physically , mentally and spiritually. A new cult of a real man and a beautiful woman should arise in the minds of people. The best person in all respects is a healthy, non-alcoholic, and non-smoking person. Unfortunately, from the TV screens we see how the next hero from the film smokes, drinks alcohol, and that's cool.
Young people easily begin to imitate the characters from the film, which leads to degradation already at a young age.
A smoker and a drinker should not become a hero, but an outcast in modern society.
A person should be ashamed that he smokes, and not proud of it.
If he sees that normal people look at him with disgust, with contempt, maybe then he will think. The smoker must know that if he does not give up his bad habit, he has little chance of meeting his life partner, he will not get a normal job, he will not achieve anything in life. Your soulmate, your employer does not need sick people, does not need drug addicts (I consider everyone who smokes and drinks alcohol to be drug addicts). If I'm wrong, write in the comments, we'll discuss.
Fortunately, society is slowly changing. And what used to be an ideal, an example to follow, becomes a subject of disgust and humiliation.
The future of the country and the nation belongs to strong people who lead a healthy lifestyle and do not use, though weak, but drugs - nicotine and alcohol.
That's all. Watch more videos about the dangers of smoking.
Good luck in getting rid of bad habits.
Probably, today every child knows perfectly well that smoking is bad and harmful. Thanks to a targeted and large-scale anti-tobacco campaign, there are fewer and fewer smokers in the world. But still, there remains a huge number of people who honor and cherish their own deadly habit and do not want to part with it.
The fact is that smoking is an insidious enemy. Coming to a person under the guise of a friend who, in difficult times, can support, give relaxation and tranquility, a cigarette is firmly established in the mind of a person and begins to take over in the body. A lot has been written about the dangers of smoking on the human body. Let's briefly recall the evil that a cigarette brings with it.
Smoking completely destroys the human body
Under this perfectly knowing about harm? This anti-social habit has long been a worldwide disaster. The cigarette has firmly tamed a huge number of people. But, the worst thing is that this dependence is formed in two directions at once: physical psychological. We can say that a person is really captured by tobacco smoke.
Interest in smoking begins in childhood
It has been proven that the presence of psychological dependence directly affects the impossibility of quickly parting with addiction. No wonder they say that a person is a slave of his habits.
Considering the physiological aspect of smoking, we will understand that with complete oblivion of cigarettes, only beneficial changes occur in the body:
- vasodilation;
- improvement of brain activity;
- stabilization of the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract;
- restoration of the respiratory system.
It is in the physical plane that a person experiences beneficial changes after quitting smoking. What can not be said about the psychological mood. Moreover, additional difficulties are added by the fact that the person sets himself up, that parting with a cigarette will be very painful. After all, what then will help fight depression, stress and anxiety?
This is the echo of the very psychological addiction. And it appears immediately after the decision to quit smoking. But the most dangerous thing is that smoking is a habit acquired purposefully. The human body is absolutely not designed to be affected by additional artificial doping.
Remember, smokers, your first attempts to inhale. Cough, disgust and desire to throw away the cigarette. But a person stubbornly learns the basics of smoking and arm himself with a cigarette pack. Why and why? Maybe just not everyone knows what it will turn out to be?
Harm of smoking on the human body briefly
People who start their day with a cigarette and continue to actively tar throughout the day do not even realize what a huge amount of carcinogens they “launch” into their own bodies. Doctors have established and proved that by smoking about 15-20 cigarettes, a smoker “replenishes” his physical potential by:
- 40-45 mg of ammonia;
- 120-130 mg of nicotine;
- 0.5-0.6 l of carbon monoxide;
- 0.5-2 mg of hydrocyanic acid.
Add here a huge list of more than 400 types of carcinogens, and you can independently assess the harm of tobacco to the human body. Given that carcinogenic compounds have a powerful ability to be deposited in the bowels of the human body. Where they constantly and purposefully destroy the work of internal organs, ruthlessly destroying health.
Composition of tobacco smoke
It is a well-known fact that the life of active smokers with a long smoking history is reduced in comparison with non-smokers by 6-12 years.
Thanks to numerous and lengthy studies, doctors have found that smoking:
- Detrimental to the immune system.
- Stably lowers overall well-being.
- Increases the risk of developing oncological processes.
- Seriously disrupts the reproductive system. This applies to both men and women.
- Significantly narrows blood vessels, which leads to the development of oxygen starvation and problems of the cardiovascular system.
Cigarettes and the nervous system
The toxic carcinogens that every tobacco product has have a devastating effect on the human central nervous system. The tasks of the nervous system include control over all processes occurring in the body. The central nervous system reacts to tobacco intoxication as follows:
- Decreased attention, distraction and forgetfulness.
- Dizziness caused by a sharp narrowing of the lumen of the blood vessels.
- Feeling of loss of consciousness. The person seems to fall into a short-term prostration.
Heavy smokers with a long history of cigarette addiction in most cases have persistent memory impairment, depressive manifestations, and severe migraines. Neurotic signs are also formed, often smokers are haunted by chronic fatigue. Carcinogenic smoke has an extremely negative effect on a person's ability to sense tastes and smells..
How do cigarettes affect the nervous system
Doctors have proven that long-term smoking significantly reduces a person's ability to perceive colors. Smokers have impaired color perception. The same applies to the work of olfactory receptors.
Smoke lovers also complain about the manifestations of their hearing and vision problems. Toxic compounds are detrimental to the visual and auditory nerves. If there are already existing problems (diseases) on the part of the central nervous system, a smoker can expect disability over time.
Smoking and the respiratory system
The main and destructive impact of tobacco smoke inflicts bronchopulmonary organs. Heavy, sticky particles of soot and soot settle in large quantities in the bronchi, disrupting the normal breathing process. Bronchial alveoli are gradually destroyed, subsequently provoking inflammatory processes.
The effect of cigarettes on the respiratory system
Think of the famous smoker's cough that starts in the morning and lasts all day. Such a cough syndrome is accompanied by expectoration of viscous grayish sputum. It is coughing up particles of soot that interfere with normal breathing. The voice of the smoker also changes, it becomes rough and hoarse.
During the year of smoking, about 1-1.5 kg of tobacco tar passes through the lungs of a person, over time, the lungs darken. This is clearly seen in the autopsy of a deceased smoker. Such photos are often used in visual anti-smoking posters.
A constant agonizing cough gradually stretches the alveoli, which worsens their tone and elasticity. All smokers, without exception, have various malfunctions in the respiratory system. Doctors state with regret the fact that the number of cases of tuberculosis is growing among people who smoke. Smoking is the main cause of various oncological processes occurring in the pulmonary system.
Tobacco carcinogenic smoke contains amines in large quantities. These compounds, when interacting with salivary fluid, form toxic toxins - nitrosamines. Once in the stomach, nitrosamines can trigger the growth of malignant cells. Not to mention that tobacco also contains a number of radioactive elements, which only add to the risk of developing cancer.
Tobacco and the heart
Smoking significantly increases the heart rate, forcing the myocardium to work hard. This greatly increases the workload on the heart. Nicotinic compounds, together with the bloodstream, end up in the adrenal glands, provoking the latter to actively produce hormones that increase blood pressure.
How do cigarettes affect the cardiovascular system?
The heart needs more and more effort to pump blood, given that the lumen of the vessels due to the same smoking is significantly narrowed. It worsens the blood supply to the myocardium and carboxyhemoglobin, which is part of carbon monoxide. It is inhaled in large quantities by a smoker, smoking a cigarette.
The lover of tobacco smoke inhales and a lot of catecholamines, which, penetrating into the blood, become the causes of increased deposition of fatty plaques. This situation becomes the direct culprit of atherosclerotic deposits and the development of atherosclerosis. The sad result is obesity of the heart and its various pathologies.
Cigarettes and the digestive system
Carcinogenic smoke has an extremely negative effect on the digestive tract. Smoke begins its detrimental effect even during the first puff. Irritating to the teeth, oral mucosa and tongue, tobacco smoke can lead to numerous infectious diseases, not to mention oncological processes.
How cigarettes affect digestion
A smoker's teeth gradually turn yellow and decay. And what about the unpleasant smell that coexists with a lover of nicotine products? Once in the stomach, tobacco smoke carcinogens greatly increase the risk of developing ulcerative pathologies, gastritis and pancreatitis.
Nicotine also greatly aggravates intestinal motility. It is this fact that affects the fact that smokers often complain of a lack of appetite and various problems with the stool (diarrhea, constipation, flatulence).
Smoking and the reproductive system
How can tobacco smoke addiction harm human reproductive functions? Poisonous toxins and carcinogens have a direct and very powerful destructive effect on the germ cells of the human body. The harm of smoking on the body of a man is the development of erectile dysfunction, a drop in libido. Women suffer from various disorders of the monthly cycle.
Much has been said about the dangers of smoking during pregnancy. Carcinogens and a huge list of toxic substances in tobacco smoke lead to the formation of painful toxicosis, problems with normal gestation and the birth of babies with numerous congenital pathologies.
This is only a tiny part of the destruction that smoking brings with it. The effects of nicotine on health are vast and complex. Almost all internal organs and systems suffer, collapse and die. What can be the conclusion? The sooner a person forgets about his addiction, the more likely he is to live a full, healthy and long life.
Smoking is a common habit in modern society, covering all age groups. According to statistics, there are approximately one billion people worldwide who constantly use various means of smoking. Correlation from alkaloid is a serious danger to humans. However, being aware of the risks involved in this habit is a powerful motivation that will help you overcome picket cravings.
To talk about all the horrors of smoking briefly, of course, will not work. The damage to health caused by nicotine sticks can only be compared with large-scale man-made disasters. The main evil is the inhalation of a wide variety of dangerous chemicals, as well as an increased risk of developing a variety of diseases from heart failure to cancer. According to the World Health Organization, about 5 million people die from this bad habit every year worldwide.
Main constituents of cigarette smoke
Tobacco smoke contains over 3,000 harmful synthetic phenylones. With an average daily intake of a heavy smoker - 20 cigarettes, about 120-180 mg of nicotine enters the human organs in its pure form. However, along with inhaled smoke, hundreds of poisons penetrate the broncho-pulmonary system:
- hydrocyanic acid;
- cyanide;
- carbon monoxide;
- arsenic, etc.
Also, when smoking, more than 50 types of carcinogens enter the human body. These include chrysene, benzopyrene and many others. Nitrosamines also enter the lungs - capable of destroying the brain and radioactive heavy substances such as lead, polonium, bismuth. All these are the components of tobacco tar, which passes through the internal human system. During the year, the lungs process more than 80 kg of this resin, some of which remains in them forever.
What harm does a smoked cigarette do?
Damage from smoking for the human body is to stimulate the development of severe chronic diseases. The toxic compounds that make up each cigarette negatively affect the appearance of a person. According to the latest data, one pack a day smoked starts the process of accelerated biological aging of the whole organism as a whole.
Tobacco submission loosens the nervous system, impairs brain activity, resulting in a significant decrease in intelligence. Also, all the chemistry of tobacco smoke reduces the functionality of the gastrointestinal tract, thereby disrupting its motility, secretory activity, leading to various degrees of gastritis, ulcers and other problems with the gastrointestinal tract.
Scientists have confirmed the threat from smoking. They found a link between weakness to tobacco and blindness. Malignant carcinogens cause retinal dystrophy and also negatively affect the optic nerve endings. Also, violations in the hearing aid are associated with the use of wakshtaf. Nicotine has a destructive effect on the innervation of the internal components of the ear, as a result of which sleep disturbances may occur, the sense of smell and taste buds may be dulled.
Every cigarette you smoke increases your risk of heart and circulatory diseases. Constricted vessels cause tissue hypoxia, the number of heart contractions increases, and blood clots can form.
All these seemingly not so big problems subsequently lead to serious diseases that often cannot be treated. These include cancerous tumors, which are 10 times more common in smokers. It can be cancer of the mouth, stomach, lungs - those places where a large amount of nicotine resin settles and accumulates. Such diseases often end in death.
Harm of smoking for teenagers
Tobacco is very harmful to a young organism that is still growing. The developing organs and systems of young people have increased demands, they need more energy. Toxic substances and preservatives contained in a cigarette literally poison young people, contribute to a decrease in efficiency, and inhibit mental development.
The danger from smoking for young girls is of great danger. Every cigarette smoked negatively affects the appearance. The habit of smoking during puberty provokes problems with women's health, which can subsequently lead to infertility.
Harm from passive smoking
Unfortunately, not only smokers suffer from nicotine conditioning, but also the people around them. Inhaling the poisonous smoke coming from cigarettes is called passive smoking and does no less harm. A non-smoker, being in the same room with smokers, inhales much more nicotine, tar and all tobacco smoke compounds, because he inhales them without a filter. The consequences of passive smoking will be visible pretty soon, literally in half an hour they develop:
- depressive state;
- decrease in working capacity;
- eye redness;
- dryness in the throat;
- cough.
Video: Visual demonstration of the accelerated process of smoking
In a short period of time, the level of antioxidants and vitamin C in the body of a passive smoker drops, which leads to a significant deterioration in immunity and can provoke hypertension, hypotension, arrhythmia and other equally dangerous diseases.
Summarizing information about the dangers of smoking, we can say that predisposition to tobacco is a slow-acting poison that has a destructive effect on the human internal system for many years. All smokers need to realize that this slavery is seriously detrimental to health. Remember, it's never too late to change something and forget this harmful thing.
Many modern people have such a dangerous habit as smoking. But not everyone knows about the harm of smoking on the human body. When 20 cigarettes are smoked a day, 120 mg of nicotine, 40 mg of ammonia, up to 1 mg of hydrocyanic acid, 0.5 liters of carbon monoxide and some other toxic compounds enter the body. These poisons slowly poison the smoker's body, reducing his life expectancy by 5-10 years. Let's briefly talk about how tobacco smoke affects the organs and systems of the body.
How does smoking damage the nervous system?
Toxic substances present in tobacco smoke have a negative effect on the nervous system, which controls all processes in our body. The first symptom of tobacco damage to the nervous system is dizziness, accompanied by a decrease in concentration, a feeling of loss of consciousness. Dizziness is caused by a narrowing of the lumen of the large vessels that feed the brain. Those who smoke for several years show signs of a neurotic state: a feeling of chronic fatigue, irritability, memory problems, headaches.
How does tobacco smoke affect the respiratory system?
The main blow falls on the respiratory system. Both heavy soot particles and microscopic particles of toxic substances, settling on the mucous membranes of the bronchi, lead to their damage. Because of this, a chronic inflammatory process begins to develop in the tissues of the lungs. Smokers often complain of a painful cough, especially in the morning. It is accompanied by the discharge of grayish sputum. A chronic inflammatory process in the vocal cords makes the voice of a smoking person hoarse and rough. This can put an end to professional careers, such as singers.
For 1 year, up to 1 kg of tobacco tar passes through the respiratory organs of a smoker, so over time they begin to darken. Constant coughing leads to a decrease in tissue elasticity, which causes overstretching of the alveoli. All smokers have serious disorders in the respiratory system. Pulmonary tuberculosis affects people who smoke much more often than those who do not smoke. Smoking is considered the main cause of the development of cancer cells in the lungs. Tobacco smoke contains amines, which, interacting with saliva, form highly toxic substances - nitrosamines. Penetrating into the stomach, they cause the growth of malignant tumors. Tobacco contains both natural and artificial radioactive compounds. By inhaling tobacco smoke, we let them into our body, which can cause irreparable damage to it.
How does smoking affect the heart?
Smoking contributes to increased heart rate, which occurs after smoking 1 cigarette. This puts a significant strain on the human heart. When nicotine enters the bloodstream, the adrenal glands begin to produce hormones that increase blood pressure. It also increases the load on the heart muscle. It needs more energy to pump blood through the narrowed arteries. With blockage of the lumen of the vessels, a decrease in body temperature is noted. When carbon monoxide is inhaled, the concentration of carboxyhemoglobin increases, which worsens the blood supply to the heart muscle.
Inhalation of tobacco smoke increases the risk of developing a deadly pathology - atherosclerosis.
Tobacco smoke has a negative effect on the digestive tract. Getting into the mouth, smoke irritates the tongue and mucous membranes, contributes to the destruction of tooth enamel. Smokers often have bad breath. Irritation of the salivary glands leads to increased salivation. Smoking greatly increases the risk of cancer of the tongue and lips. The toxic function of tobacco smoke is associated with its temperature, chemical and mechanical effects. When ingested, toxic substances contribute to the development of peptic ulcer. Smokers are several times more likely to develop ulcers than non-smokers. Frequent irritation of the mucous membranes of the stomach contributes to the development of gastritis. Nicotine slows down intestinal motility. This is due to the decrease in appetite in smokers. In addition, they often have an enlarged liver, which disappears after giving up this bad habit.
What harm does smoking do to the endocrine glands? Poisonous substances primarily affect the sex glands. In men, this manifests itself in the form of erectile dysfunction, in women - the menstrual cycle. Smoking during pregnancy contributes to the occurrence of toxicosis, miscarriage, and the development of pathologies in the fetus.
