The list of known diseases related to smoking has grown since the U.S. Surgeon General first announced the link between tobacco use and three chronic diseases in 1964. Researchers now understand that the toxins transmitted by cigar, pipe and cigarette smoking enter the bloodstream and affect the entire body. From the immediate effects on the heart and lungs to years of carcinogenic exposure, the physical stress caused by smoking creates many potentially fatal health problems.
Cancer
Lung cancer and larynx cancer were among the first diseases found to be caused by cigarette smoking. With over 50 carcinogens identified in tobacco, it's no surprise that smoking remains responsible for 85 percent of all deaths from lung cancer alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC.
Because the blood carries those carcinogens throughout the body, tobacco use can cause leukemia as well as cancers of the throat, esophagus, stomach, pancreas, kidney and bladder. Secondhand smoke can also cause cancer.
Bronchitis
Chronic bronchitis is the remaining disease in the group first identified by the surgeon general, possibly because the symptomatic "smoker's cough" was an obvious correlation. The American Lung Association, ALA relates that chronic bronchitis results from repeated throat irritation and breathing that is obstructed by excess mucus.
The cough develops in an attempt to clear the impaired airways. Children and adults can get chronic bronchitis, the early stage of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD from cigarette smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke. Breathing obstructions are potentially fatal.
Emphysema
Emphysema is the second, more severe stage of COPD. The ALA notes that it takes years of lung damage to cause emphysema's characteristic decline in breathing ability. This common health problem of long-term tobacco users can be managed in some cases, but not cured. The CDC reports that COPD remains the fourth major cause of death in the United States.
Coronary Heart Disease
The surgeon general also names cigarette smoking as a potential cause for coronary heart disease brought on by atherosclerosis, or narrowing of the arteries. The American Heart Association reports that first- and secondhand smoke can create this health problem, which may lead to heart attack, stroke or aneurysm.
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Smoking cigarettes can also cause severe health problems in babies, including sudden infant death syndrome, SIDS. The CDC notes that SIDS remains the leading cause of death in children 1 to 12 months of age. Tobacco use by the mother greatly increases the risk of SIDS, by up to four times the norm for children not exposed to smoke.
References
- U.S. Surgeon General: List of Diseases Caused by Smoking
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Health Effects of Smoking
- American Lung Association: COPD
- American Heart Association: Cigarette Smoking and Cardiovascular Disease
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Health Effects of Secondhand Smoke
