Smoking Essay Examples

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SmokingSmoking is considered as one of the health risk factors that could result in the development of chronic diseases. The use of tobacco has been described by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a risk for increasing deaths and the growing prevalence of lung and heart diseases. There are different causes why smoking could adversely affect the body’s normal function and alter its healthy state. As a consequence, there are significant effects produced by smoking to the body. While smoking is considered to be a behavioral health risk factor, it is highly preventable. It is thus worth understanding the cause and effects of smoking to various diseases that may result from this kind of unhealthy behavior. The cause and effects of smoking is significant in causing chronic diseases to occur and it is highly associated ti cardiovascular diseases, pulmonary diseases, cancers and pregnancy risks. Smoking is the cause for heart diseases and its effects result to cardiovascular compromise. ​Smoking could increase the body’s metabolic rate that could force the heart to pump rapidly and more forcibly. This could add more stress to the cardiovascular system that could result in the development of various heart diseases. Accordingly, smoking could increase the heart rate by 10 to 20 beats more than normal. The nicotine from cigarettes could also damage the walls of the arteries, causing them to harden that eventually makes the arterial wall inflexible. As an effect, there is an increased build up of pressure as the blood flows through the arteries thereby resulting to an increased blood pressure and the risk for stroke. Consequently, as more plaques are formed along the arterial wall, blood clots may develop. Research studies also implicate smoking in affecting the lipid metabolism in the body which is responsible for the build up of high cholesterol levels (Brannon and Feist, 325). The most common smoking associated heart diseases are heart attack, stroke, angina pectoris (chest pain), and hypertension.Smoking also causes Pulmonary Diseases. The effect of tobacco smoke to the lungs is significant. Tobacco smoke contains 70 different chemicals that can cause cancer which easily spread within the body when these chemicals from tobacco smoke are inhaled (Cancer Research UK). There is a high risk for lung cancer when smoking including the occurrence of non-malignant respiratory diseases like Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), emphysema, asthma and bronchitis. The chemicals contained in tobacco smoke could either affect the body’s defenses or it may harm the normal lung functions. The chemicals from smoke may cause inflammation along the lung surface in chronic bronchitis or may cause chronic obstruction to the airflow in COPD.​There are different cancers that are associated with smoking namely cancers of the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, lungs, kidneys, urinary bladders, prostate and uterus (Moini, 159). Inhaling the chemicals contained in tobacco smoke could result in the destruction of the cells in the lungs and may cause damage and changes to the lung tissues. As these chemicals destroy the normal cell functions, cellular abnormality occurs resulting in the growth of cancer cells in various vital organs in the body, primarily the lungs.Smoking and Pregnancy risks are also prevalent effects of tobacco use. ​Smoking is also implicated to various health risks affecting pregnancy. Pregnant women who smoke will likely give birth to babies with low birth weight and premature births. This is because the harmful chemicals contained in cigarettes are capable of retarding intrauterine birth development. There are also high chances for having stillbirth and sudden infant death syndrome.​The harmful effects caused by smoking that result to serious chronic diseases are due to the harmful chemicals contained in tobacco smoke. The following are cancer causing chemicals found in tobacco smoke: arsenic, vinyl chloride, ethylene oxide, cadmium, 1,3-butadiene, nickel, polonium-210, toluene, formaldehyde and benzopyrene. ​To conclude, the cause and effect of smoking is highly attributed to the harmful chemicals found in tobacco and cigarettes. They are responsible for causing damage to the normal cells and tissues of the vital organs in the body that result to serious chronic conditions like cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, cancer and with the risks to pregnancy. Smoking is a behavioral problem that is highly preventable and cessation from smoking could significantly reduce the adverse cause and effects of smoking to health.ReferencesBrannon, Linda and Feist, Jess. Health Psychology. An Introduction to Behavior and Health. USA: Cengage Learning. 2010.Cancer Research UK. Smoking and Cancer. 18 September 2012. http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/smoking-and-cancer. 25 April 2013.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking. 10 January 2012. http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/health_effects/effects_cig_smoking/. 25 April 2013.Moini, Jahangir. Cardiopulmonary Pharmacology for Respiratory Care. London: Jones & Bartlett Learning. 2012.