‘Smoking causes cancer, smoking kills’ – You probably might have noticed this saying so many times. So it’s pretty sure that you might know that smoking is bad, it also causes breathing problems along with cancer. But do you have any idea that smoking also makes you more likely to have a terrible issue – heart attack? Count every cigarette you smoke because it makes you more likely to get a bad
cardiac health. According to a recent statistics, 1 out of 5 deaths from heart disease is directly proportional to smoking.
People who can’t be without smoking at least two to four times a day are more likely to get heart stroke or disease. Women hold the greater risk than men who smoke as well as take birth control pills. Not only that cigarette smoke not so good for the people around you. The bad part is secondhand smoke can cause lung cancer and
heart disease in people who don’t even smoke.
How does it cause heart disease?
Without a doubt, you know what nicotine does to the body. It is the major cause for all the health related issues. It can do so many bad things to your health that you can’t even imagine, such as:
- Reducing the oxygen level that goes to your heart
- Raising your blood pressure
- Speeding up your heart rate
- Making blood clots more likely, that can lead to strokes or heart attacks
- Harming your blood vessels, including the blood vessels in your heart
The risk of Atherosclerosis: This is a terrible disease in which a waxy substance called plaque will build up in the arteries. The plaque hardens over time and narrows your arteries. As a result, this limits the flow of oxygen to your organs as well as the other parts of your body. The chemicals in tobacco smoke can harm your blood cells very badly. In addition to that, they also can damage your heart function as well as the function and structure-function of your blood vessels.
Coronary heart disease (CHD) occurs if plaque builds up in the coronary (heart) arteries. Over time, CHD can lead to chest pain, heart attack, heart failure, arrhythmias, or even death.
The Risk of Peripheral Artery Disease: Smoking also is a major risk factor P.A.D… P.A.D. is a condition in which again the plaque builds up in the arteries which carry blood to the organs, head, and the limbs. People who have P.A.D., they are at increased risk for heart attack, heart disease, as well as stroke.
The list still goes on!
When it comes to heart disease smoking is one of the major risk factors when you combine it with other risk factors like
- Unhealthy blood cholesterol levels
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Overweight
But it is smoking that raises further heart disease.
In addition to that, cigarette smoking which is combined with a family history of heart problems also seems to greatly increase the rate of risk.
The Facts:
Nicotine: This is an addictive drug that affects your brain as well as muscle activity and increases your blood pressure which makes your heart work harder and harder.
Carbon monoxide: This is a poisonous gas that is actually replacing oxygen in your blood, which makes your heart beat faster than usual.
Tar: This sticky substance will coat your lungs, for example, the soot in a chimney, which can cause you
breathing issues. In addition to that, it contains a lot of chemicals that cause cancer.
Will it help if you quit smoking?
Absolutely! As soon as you stop smoking, your odds of getting heart disease or heart attacks or high blood pressure will drop. If you continue this which means not smoking for at least a year or 2, then you will be much less likely to get any sort of heart disease.
How can we miss this? Of course, kicking this habit also makes you less likely to get many types of cancers, especially, emphysema, lung cancer, and many other serious conditions.
How to stop this?
Quitting smoke can be hard at first, of course! But it helps if you plan it ahead. Write down the reason to quit smoking. And if you still feel to smoke occasionally, keep a record of that. By doing this, you will learn what triggers you to smoke and you can prepare a
SWOT analysis accordingly.
One more thing, you can make a list of hobbies by finding the things that you like to do. Find an alternate thing to do when you feel like smoking. Consult your doctor and if needed ask him/her to prescribe some medications or take the suggestion about using nicotine gum.
Millions and millions of people had done this. They took and effort to quit smoking and they seem to be successful and happy with the decision. Your little effort can make a big difference when it comes to your health because you need to be healthy in order to pursue your dreams.
