We are all aware of the dangers of smoking. It is known that smoking causes many health problems not only to the person who smokes but to others who are passive smokers. Smoking affects most of the body parts and internal organs causing major health issues to the smoker.
The Joints
The smoker overtime will experience pain and inflammation of the joints in the limbs. Smokers usually suffer from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and like for any other health problem medications don’t work effectively for people who smoke.
The Skin
Smoking affects human skin in multiple ways. Sooner than later a smoker will be faced with wrinkles and a speeding up of the aging process for the skin. The damage once done is not reversible and of course smoking can make much skin disease worsen, including skin cancer.
The Eyes
Smoking speeds up macular degeneration, which is a condition that destroys the central vision. The result is that a smoker finds it difficult to read, write and see other people’s faces properly. Smokers are also at high risk of developing early cataract and blurry vision.
The Gums
A habit of continuous smoking causes heavy damage to gums and teeth. They result in tender, bleeding gums which are painful during chewing. This also leads to bad breath and other gum diseases that cause a smoker to lose teeth.
The Brain
If you are a smoker then you increase the risk of getting a stroke by over 3 times. A stroke is caused by a blood clot in the brain which can result in facial paralysis, blurred vision, trouble walking and even death. Smoking actually raises your blood pressure and cause hypertension. The blood vessel in the brain swells due to blood pressure and it can burst or spill blood to the nearby tissues causing what is called as cerebral aneurysm.
The Digestive System
Expect peptic ulcers, Crohn’s disease, and inflammation of pancreas, colon polyps and even cancer. The risk for all these diseases is very real for a smoker. A smoker also gets type 2 diabetes more easily, which can later affect the liver and pancreas.
The Lungs
Lungs in a human body are the most vulnerable of organs when a person is in the habit of smoking. Lung cancer is linked to smoking and so also cancers of the mouth, kidney, liver, bladder, stomach, colon and rectum. Smoking is a major cause of pulmonary diseases, which can affect the air sacs in the lungs and cause difficulty in breathing.
The Heart
Smoking is a major cause for many types of heart diseases. Smoking actually hardens and narrows the arteries and also causes the blood to thicken. All these can produce small and larger clots that hinder blood flow from the heart leading to a heart attack.