Tobacco of all sorts — smoked, chewed or inhaled through the nose— has numerous poisonous chemicals. All these chemicals are injurious to the body. The problem with tobacco is that even those who are not smoking but are inhaling second hand smoke, can also get the adverse effects of the toxic chemicals in tobacco.

 

WHY PEOPLE SMOKE

Why do people smoke? Why do others end up being addicted?

It is quite common to see youngsters smoking. In part, this because cigarette manufacturers have aggressive advertising campaigns that depict smoking as cool, and the smokers get all the beautiful girls! According to these adverts, those who do not smoke are wet blankets! Which teen wants to be a wet blanket?

Most people start to smoke because they see relatives and friends smoking. Many teenagers are influenced by peer pressure to start smoking.

Others fail to start smoking. Because of the many hundreds of toxins in tobacco the body initially rejects tobacco. Some people feel nausea and some even vomit. Some feel hotness in the throat and chest. The body just feels bad/odd for some people, and they are unable to continue smoking.

Those who go through the initial rejection — for whatever reason — eventually end up as tobacco addicts. Many fool themselves as having the ability to stop whenever they want to, to no avail!

Tobacco has nicotine which is addictive. Once the stage of addiction is reached, the smokers body craves for tobacco and withdrawal symptoms occur if there is no nicotine in the body. Apart from nicotine, cigarette manufacturers add all sorts of other chemicals, like menthol, to make the body crave for a cig.

 

THE MEDICAL PROBLEMS FROM TOBACCO

• The life span of smokers is less than that of non-smokers
• After many years of smoking, cigarettes can
  • Damage blood vessels – leading to gangrene especially of legs
  • Damage the heart – leading to heart attacks
  • Damage the brain – leading to strokes
  • Lead to cancer of the mouth, throat, lungs, bladder, stomach, and pancreas
  • Lead to higher rates of TB
  • Lead to chronic lung diseases
  • Lead to dental and gum infections
• Other effects of tobacco are
  • Bad breath
  • Weaker bones
  • Wrinkled skin
  • Discoloured teeth
  • Increased complications of family planning pills for women
  • Bad smell imparted to cloths, hair, bedding, hands, chairs, cars etc.
  • Higher prevalence of infertility
  • Delayed wound healing
  • Increased prevalence of chest infections, including pneumonia
  • Increased asthmatic attacks for asthmatics who smoke or who inhale secondary smoke
  • Impaired immunity youngsters who smoke and in children who smoke second-hand smoke

People with problems like diabetes, hypertension, and asthma have serious complications made worse by tobacco

OTHER PROBLEMS FROM TOBACCO

Smoking is equivalent to burning money. So, there a financial burden to this addiction. For the wealthy, this may not dent their pockets, but for millions of other smokers, something suffers if they decide to burn their dosh. There is a psychological cost as well, as smoking may interfere with family relations, especially in a home were there are children and one partner does not smoke.

Covid-19 aside, how many non-smokers want to kiss a smoker!? That’s right, a smoker immediately limits his circle of friends! Smokers also are increasingly facing hostile environments as most bars and restaurants are no longer smoker-friendly environments. This has the psychological effect of alienation and rejection on smokers, which may manifest in unforeseen ways.

PREVENTION AND TREATMENT

Prevention by not smoking is the best medicine for the problems that result from tobacco. For those who are addicted and have difficulty in stopping, a few things might help. These include:

• Nicotine chewing gum
• Nicotine patches
• Hypnosis

Nicotine chewing gum and nicotine patches have a little nicotine. This is for the smoker to avoid inhaled tobacco which has massive amounts of nicotine. Hypnosis, unfortunately, is not effective in stopping people from smoking.

…and oh yeah! The handsome dude with a horse, a beautiful chick, and a cigarette may not be as virile as the image shows! Quite likely, tobacco has affected the nerves and blood vessels in his water works!

Have a smoke free day!