Smoking cigarettes will kill you, but before you die, you could experience some pretty terrible diseases and health conditions from smoking. Here are some of the most gruesome diseases caused by smoking:
1.Lung Cancer:
Cigarette smoking is the principal risk factor for development of lung cancer.
The two types of lung cancer, which grow and spread differently, are small cell lung cancers (SCLC) and non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC).
Lung cancer is a type of cancer that begins in the lungs. Your lungs are two spongy organs in your chest that take in oxygen when you inhale and release carbon dioxide when you exhale.
2.COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease):
COPD is a lung disease that makes it hard to breathe. It is caused by damage to the lungs over many years, usually from smoking.
is an umbrella term used to describe progressive lung diseases including emphysema, chronic bronchitis, refractory (non-reversible) asthma, and some forms of bronchiectasis. This disease is characterized by increasing breathlessness.
COPD may cause no symptoms or only mild symptoms. As the disease gets worse, symptoms usually become more severe. They include:
A cough that produces a lot of mucus
Shortness of breath, especially with physical activity
Wheezing
Chest tightness
3.Heart Disease:
Smoking harms nearly every organ in your body, including your heart. Smoking can cause blockages and narrowing in your arteries, which means less blood and oxygen flow to your heart. When cigarette consumption in the U.S. decreased, so did the rates of heart disease.
4.Stroke:
Stroke is a serious medical condition in which blood flow to one or more portions of the brain is inhibited. Once blood flow is cut off, the brain can’t get the oxygen it needs, and brain cells begin to die rapidly.
Smoking blocks the carotid artery. So, blood supply to the brain cells are cut off. This results in stroke, called cerebral thrombosis. Smokers’ risk of having a stroke is 1.5 times more than non-smokers.
Smoking also leads to thickening and clotting of the blood.
Smoking causes oxidative stress.
5.Asthma:
Asthma is a disease affecting the airways that carry air to and from your lungs. People who suffer from this chronic condition (long-lasting or recurrent) are said to be asthmatic.
doctor examining a lung x-ray
The inside walls of an asthmatic's airways are swollen or inflamed. This swelling or inflammation makes the airways extremely sensitive to irritations and increases your susceptibility to an allergic reaction.
6.Reproductive Effects in Women:
Some of the effects of tobacco smoke on the female reproductive system include
Reduced fertility;
Menstrual cycle irregularities, absence of menstruation and menstrual cramps;
Menopause reached one or two years earlier;
Increased risk of cancer of the cervix and vulva; and
If a smoker is aged over 35 years and taking the oral contraceptive pill, the risk of stroke and heart attack increases
7.Premature, Low Birth-Weight Babies:
Smoking during pregnancy has been associated with a host of complications, including low birth weight, premature rupture of the membranes, placenta previa, placental abruption, and preterm birth.
8.Diabetes:
smoking causes type 2 diabetes. In fact, smokers are 30–40% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than nonsmokers. And people with diabetes who smoke are more likely than nonsmokers to have trouble with insulin dosing and with controlling their disease.
9.Blindness, Cataracts and Age-Related Macular Degeneration:
Smoking And Cataracts
Cataracts (clouding of the eye's natural lens) are a leading cause of blindness in the world. More than 50 percent of Americans will have a cataract or have had cataract surgery by age 80.
Smokers significantly increase their risk of developing a cataract compared with non-smokers.
10.Over 10 Other Types of Cancer, Including Colon, Cervix, Liver, Stomach and Pancreatic Cancer:
smoking can cause cancer and then block your body from fighting it:
Poisons in cigarette smoke can weaken the body’s immune system, making it harder to kill cancer cells. When this happens, cancer cells keep growing without being stopped.
Poisons in tobacco smoke can damage or change a cell's DNA. DNA is the cell's "instruction manual" that controls a cell's normal growth and function. When DNA is damaged, a cell can begin growing out of control and create a cancer tumor.
