Smoking causes a wide range of diseases among tobacco users which varies from diseases as serious as cancer to those as trivial as aging of skin.
Smokers are highly susceptible to cancer compared to non-smokers. Lung cancer, throat cancer and mouth cancer are very common among smokers. Ninety percent of lung cancers are due to smoking. Only 0.5 percent of non smokers develop lung cancer. One in five heavy smokers and one in ten moderate smokers is sure to die of lung cancer. The risk of lung cancer depends on the number of cigarettes smoked, the deeper the smoker inhales and the age the smoker starts smoking. The risk of contacting mouth cancer is four times higher in smokers than that in non smokers. Cancer can start in any area of the mouth, the most common being on or underneath the tongue or on the lips. The other types of cancer seen in smokers are cancer of the bladder, esophagus, kidneys, pancreas and cervix.
Smoking is the most common cause of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and contributes to 80 percent of the cases. COPD is the term for the diseases in which there is airflow block and breathing troubles. Emphysema and Chronic Bronchitis are diseases included in COPD. Emphysema is breathlessness due to damage of air sacs and chronic bronchitis is cough with a lot of mucus which lasts for at least three months. COPD generally starts between the ages of 35 and 45. The decline in lung function in smokers is three times more than in non smokers, which ultimately leads to breathlessness.
To avoid these diseases it is very important to
Quit smoking naturally or pharmacologically.
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