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10 Facts on Smoking

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, nicotine, which is in tobacco products, is "one of the most heavily used addictive drugs in the United States." Though smoking cigarettes and other forms of tobacco products are addictive, it does not mean you cannot quit, so you can improve your quality of life. In the "Annual Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Years of Potential Life Lost, and Productivity Losses" reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cigarette smoking is the primary cause of avoidable death in the United States. According to the American Lung Association, smoking is the blame for over 5 million deaths yearly. The next time you are thinking about smoking, consider several smoking facts.

  1. Chemical in Ingredients

    • More than 4,800 chemicals are in cigarettes. At least 69 of these chemicals result in cancers. Smoking causes about 90 percent lung cancer casualties. In addition, 80 to 90 percent of emphysema and chronic bronchitis are the results of smoking.

    Nicotine Addiction

    • The tobacco plant naturally contains the drug nicotine. The bloodstream quickly absorbs the nicotine, reaching the brain within seconds. According to the 1998, United States Department of Health and Human Services "Nicotine Addiction: A Report of the Surgeon General," smoking results in addiction parallel to the addiction created by cocaine and heroin.

    Diseases Caused by Smoking

    • The 2004 United States Surgeon General's report, the "Health Consequences of Smoking" indicates smoking is the reason for several diseases, such as coronary heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stroke, cataract, abdominal aortic aneurysm, pneumonia, acute myeloid leukemia, periodontitis, and bladder, esophageal, laryngeal, kidney, lung, throat, oral, stomach, cervical and pancreatic cancers. In addition, smoking may affect infertility, slow healing injuries and peptic ulcer disease.

    Nonsmokers and Secondhand Smoke

    • In the United States, secondhand smoke is responsible for almost 3,400 lung cancer fatalities and 46,000 heart disease mortalities in mature nonsmokers yearly, according to the 2005 California Environmental Protection Agency's report, "Health Effects of Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke."

    Adverse Effects on Children

    • Parents' smoking can cause unfavorable effects on children, such as frequent colds, asthmas, sudden infant death syndrome and increased ear infections. Secondhand smoke results in 790,000 doctor visits regarding middle ear infections, roughly 202,000 asthma occurrences and 430 sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) cases annually.

    Babies and Smoking

    • Approximately $366 million goes to neonatal health-care expenses caused by mothers' smoking during pregnancy. An estimated 20 to 30 percent of low-birth weight infants, 10 percent of infant mortalities and 14 percent preterm births are due to smoking during pregnancy.

    Persistence in Quitting

    • Quitting smoking requires persistence and determination. Incorporating medication or counseling when trying to stop smoking helps, but using both provides a better chance in stopping the habit.

    Quit Smoking with Medication

    • The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved 39 medications as of June 12, 2009, to help people stop smoking. Cessation products on the FDA list are an assortment of nicotine gum, nicotine patches, nicotine lozenges, nicotine nasal spray and nicotine inhalers.

    Lung Disease

    • In people currently smoking, chronic lung disease represents 73 percent of smoking-related circumstances. Reformed smokers represent 50 percent of smoking related circumstances.

    Risky Tobacco Products

    • Bidis, small hand-rolled cigarettes, cigars, pipes, cigarettes and any type of smokeless tobacco are deadly. For instance, bidis, normally smoked in South-East Asia and India produce three times the nicotine and five time more tar than ordinary cigarettes.

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