Diseases Caused By Smoking - Major Diseases Caused By Smoking Are Cardiovascular Disease

Statistics say that about a third of global male population smokes and that every eight second, someone dies from tobacco use. In America, it is the leading preventable cause of death and also the cause of many other diseases. At this point in time, the cigarette market is controlled by America, England and Japan.

Many people are surprised to learn that smoking does not just affect the lungs but also other parts and almost every major organ in the body. It not only causes cancer of the lungs, but also other types of cancers including kidney cancer. Many people realize that when they smoke, the smoke reaches their lungs and that is why the lungs are damaged but they neglect the fact that lungs don't simply provide us with oxygen, they provide our red blood cell with oxygen. The lungs are responsible for oxygenating the blood. And this is where the link between smoking and cardiovascular diseases arises. Cardiovascular means relating to heart and circulation.

One of the major diseases caused by smoking is Emphysema, which is the change in the anatomy of the lungs. It is a damage undergone by the air sacs which will ultimately lead to low quality of blood reaching our body. Also, it sends nicotine into our blood stream.

Smoking will affect the heart in every possible way but it also affects the arteries. The type of heart disease caused by smoking is coronary. Smoking increases blood pressure and increases the tendency for blood clot. When these blood clots begin to build up, and the nicotine deposits have already significantly narrowed the artery walls down, the smoker is in danger of heart failure. Eventually the blood clots will build up and block an artery thus causing a heart attack. If a person survives this first heart attack and undergoes by-pass surgery, he will still be at risk of another heart attack.

Smoking can also cause the arteries to harden. It also raises blood pressure. When the arteries harden and blood pressure is high, the heart needs to work harder to send the right amount of blood to different parts of the body. If at anytime the heart fails to send the right amount of blood to a pert of the body, like the brain, the smoker could have a stroke.

The type of coronary disease caused by smoking also depends what type of artery is affected. If it is the artery responsible for supplying blood to the heart then, its getting narrowed or clogged will result in heart failure. If the artery supplying blood to the brain is clogged, then the smoker may have stroke, or paralyses in one part or whole of the body. If it affects the artery supplying blood to the kidney, then the kidney could fail and will also cause high blood pressure.

Also the survival rate of a smoker post any type of operation is less. A smoker is more prone to successive heart attacks and is likely to die within an hour of the first heart attack. What's worse is that these harmful affects stay even after one has quit smoking. So if you are thinking of taking it up, think again. Smoking is not cool and it damages you in innumerable ways.

• Janny Raines
• 31/01/2009, 10:59 PM
• 0 Comments