Pipe, cigar and cigarette smoking, once thought to cause only lung cancer and "smoker's cough," are now known to pose health complications in many areas of the body. The U.S. surgeon general notes that tobacco smoke is absorbed into and dispersed from the bloodstream, which then supplies all of the body's cells with oxygen tainted by toxins. Smokers should no longer be surprised at the disparate health problems that can arise from continual tobacco use.
Cancer
Cigarette smoking and inhaling secondhand smoke causes nearly 90 percent of the lung cancer cases reported in the United States, most of which end in death. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that whether cancers spread from the lungs or arise spontaneously elsewhere, other areas of the body are susceptible to carcinogenesis and related health problems. These include leukemia and cancers of the throat, stomach, kidney and cervix.
Respiratory Disease
Tobacco use is associated with health complications and death from chronic bronchitis and emphysema, the CDC says. These respiratory diseases, collectively called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, are responsible for the fourth-greatest number of deaths from all causes nationwide. Nearly 90 percent of COPD deaths are associated with cigarette smoking.
Cardiovascular Disease
Heart attack and stroke have been definitively linked to smoking, largely due to its acceleration of atherosclerosis, or "hardening" of the arteries. The American Heart Association notes that this health complication, plus the greater tendency for smokers' blood to clot, can promote life-threatening cardiac emergencies.
Reproductive Complications
Female smokers may find it more difficult to get pregnant and to carry a child to full term, the CDC reports. Tobacco use or exposure to secondhand smoke by the mother is associated with health complications in babies and children, including poor lung development and low birth weight.
Eye Health Problems
The surgeon general recognizes research that links cigarette smoking with greater risks for cataracts and age-related macular degeneration. These conditions represent leading causes of blindness and vision loss in the U.S.
Oral Degeneration
Periodontitis, a severe gum disease, is now scientifically connected to tobacco use. The surgeon general notes that this progressive weakening of the gums can affect the jawbone and cause tooth loss. Developing periodontitis also raises smokers' already elevated risks for heart disease complications.
Bone Degeneration
The CDC cites studies of postmenopausal women who smoke that found their bone density measurably lower than that of their nonsmoking peers. Health problems related to this condition of osteoporosis include hip and other bone fractures.
References
- U.S. Surgeon General: List of Diseases Caused by Smoking
- Centers for Disease Control (CDC): Smoking Health Effects FAQs
- American Heart Association: Cigarette Smoking and Cardiovascular Disease
- Centers for Disease Control (CDC): Health Effects of Smoking
- U.S. Surgeon General: Report on the Other Health Effects of Smoking
