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Posted
on 03-Aug-01 09:54 PM
Reasons To Quit
The Numbers Don't Lie
While everyone has their own reason's for quitting, one thing is certain: smoking is deadly. In fact, smoking kills over 400,000 Americans every year. That's more than alcohol, suicides, homicides, fires, illegal drugs, and AIDS combined.
How To Cram 4,000 Chemicals And 43 Carcinogens In One Little Cigarette
You've probably heard about nicotine and tar, but did you know that cigarette smoke also contains 4,000 chemicals including the following dangerous chemicals?
Name Your Poison:
Ammonia (found in floor cleaner) Formaldehyde (preservation of body tissue)
Arsenic (rat poison) Methane (rocket fuel)
Butane (lighter fluid) Cadmium (batteries)
Hydrogen Cyanide (gas chamber poisoning) Carbon Monoxide (car exhaust)
Nicotine Is Addictive
Nicotine is the addictive drug in tobacco. It raises your blood pressure and heart rate each time you smoke. Because of its addictive nature, when the level of nicotine in your blood lowers, you may reach for a cigarette without even thinking about it. What your actually doing is treating withdrawal symptoms of nicotine.
Smoking Related Diseases
One out of two smokers will die from smoking related diseases. The most common related smoking related diseases are:
Emphysema:
Emphysema slowly destroys the lungs making breathing so uncomfortable that a simple walk to the corner store is not possible. Although this damage can't be reversed, you can prevent further damage by quitting.
Lung Cancer and Other Cancers:
Lung cancer is caused by the tar and nicotine in tobacco smoke. Most lung cancers can't be removed by surgery and victims usually die within months of diagnosis.
In 1990, 119, 920 people died of lung cancer in the United States.
Smoking also causes cancer of the lip, mouth, throat, larynx, and bladder and is a risk factor for cancers of the pancreas, stomach, cervix, and kidney.
Cardiovascular Disease:
Cardiovascular Disease is caused by nicotine and carbon monoxide in cigarettes. Your already overworked heart has to work even harder to do everyday activities. Cardiovascular Disease saps your energy and makes breathing very difficult.
In 1990, approximately 179,820 Americans died of cardiovascular diseases caused by smoking.
Peripheral Vascular Disease
Peripheral Vascular Disease develops when less blood and oxygen circulate to your hands and feet. It begins as a numb or painful feeling and could result in gangrene.
Fertility And Childbirth
Reduced Fertility:
Many women who smoke are less fertile than nonsmokers. They take longer to conceive and are more likely to have a miscarriage.
Impotence:
Men who smoke may suffer from impotence due to damage to the blood vessels in the penis.
Lower Hormone Levels:
Smoking reduces the amount of hormone estrogen in the body.
Contraceptive & Heart Attack Risks
Taking the contraceptive pill combine with smoking increases the risks of heart attacks and strokes by around ten times.
Low Birth Weight
Babies born to mothers who smoked during pregnancy are more likely to be underweight or premature. They also tend to be sick more often, cry more and sleep less than babies born to non-smoking mothers.
Children
Children whose parents smoke are more likely to develop pneumonia and bronchitis in their first year of life than children of non-smoking parents. They're also more likely to suffer from more frequent and severs attacks of asthma. And older children are more likely to try cigarettes or to become smokers if one or both parents smoke.
Second-hand Smoke
Second-hand smoke, also called Environmental Tobacco Smoke (EST) or passive smoking, is smoke you breath from other people's cigarettes. It can cause lung damage, lung cancer, and heart disease. That's why smoking isn't permitted in most enclosed public places and offices.
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