How Does Smoking Affect Your Health?

The Health of a Smoker

Want to know exactly how smoking affects your health? With every inhalation, you are taking toxins into your bloodstream and causing considerable damage. Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals. The following are some of the effects of smoking on your body:

1. Nicotine causes chemical or biological changes in the brain

2. Formaldehyde irritates the eyes, ears, and throat

3. Increased chance of heart attack

4. Reproductive problems for both men and women

5. Lung diseases such as emphysema, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and asthma

6. Hydrogen cyanide enters the lungs causing nausea, increased rate of respiration, and eye and skin irritation- even after short exposures

7. Carbon monoxide stays in your circulatory system for up to 6 hours, depriving the brain, heart, and muscles of oxygen

In addition to the physical reasons, there are psychological reasons why giving up smoking can be difficult. For example, you find smoking energizing, comforting, or relaxing. If you want to be successful in quitting, you need to develop a strategy to help you cope when you feel yourself wanting to reach for a cigarette. Often, these times are based on habit and routine. Whether you're having the first coffee of the day, or going for a weekend drink with friends, there are times when you just find yourself with a cigarette in your hand. Stick with your quit plan to get past those initial cravings and in the end, it will be worth it.