The Facts About Smoking
Written by: Heather Shrum
Smoking is a Powerful Mental and Physical Addiction
Although the message about the dangers of smoking has reached many, some reports still estimate that as many as one in every four men, and one out of every five women in the United States are still lighting up. How can this be given all of the information we know today about cigarette smoke, not only in regards to the smoker's health, but in second-hand form as well? The answer is relatively simple as smoking is a powerful physical and mental addiction with 80% of smokers having withdrawal symptoms when attempting to quit.
Rat Poison in Cigarettes
Some of the chemicals in cigarette smoke may surprise most people, as a large number of them can be found in other products, such as rat poison (hydrogen cyanide). Nicotine, the most well known substance in cigarettes, is used in insecticides to kill cockroaches and other bugs. Formaldehyde, used to embalm dead bodies, acetone, found in nail polish remover, and hydrazine, which is rocket fuel, are just some of the many dangerous substances in cigarettes.
Nicotine Replacement Therapy
While there's no one method that proves inherently more successful than others in the quest to stop smoking, there are several things one can do to help put an end their nicotine addiction. Nicotine replacement therapy, known as NRT, is one such popular method, and works by providing small amounts of nicotine to minimize symptoms of withdrawal when trying to quit smoking. NRT can be in the form of transdermal patches, lozenges, gums, inhalers, and nasal sprays and are available over-the-counter.
Some Smokers Use Prescription Medication to Quit
Other smokers rely on prescription medication when trying to kick the habit such as bupropion or varenicline, while others are successful at quitting simply using the "cold turkey" method. Hypnotherapy, acupuncture, and support groups are some of the other ways smokers use to break free from their addiction.
10 Quick Smoking Facts
- Smoking cigarettes is the number one cause of lung cancer and is directly responsible for other cancers such as of the esophagus, larynx, mouth, pharynx, and bladder.
- Quitting smoking has immediate health benefits in addition to the many long-term improvements.
- Secondhand smoke, also called environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), causes approximately 3,000 deaths due to lung cancer in non-smokers every year in the United States alone.
- Cigarette smoke contains roughly 4,000 harmful chemicals, with at least 60 of them being known cancer-causing substances (carcinogens).
- Besides cancer, cigarette smoke also contributes to chronic diseases of the lung, such as bronchitis and emphysema.
- If a woman smokes during pregnancy, the risks of stillbirths, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), and low birth weight dramatically increase.
- Nearly 80% of all adult smokers began their habit before the age of 18.
- 4,000 people under the age of 18 try smoking for the very first time every day.
- Tobacco use causes more than $75 billion dollars in medical care every year in the United States.
- Cigarette smoking is the most preventable cause of all deaths.
