The list of diseases caused by cigarette smoking grows over the years as research becomes more conclusive. From the U.S. Surgeon General's original finding that cigarettes cause cancer, the deadly consequences of smoking continue to accumulate. Tobacco users and those who inhale their passive smoke face higher than normal risks of developing health problems caused by smoking.
Lung Cancer
The sheer number of deaths from lung cancer among tobacco users initially steered researchers toward proving that smoking causes lung cancer. The American Cancer Society notes that the incidence of lung cancer could be substantially reduced if no one smoked. As 2004, men and women smokers represented about 85 percent of lung cancer fatalities in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease begins with chronic bronchitis, a tobacco-use illness typified by frequent coughing of phlegm. Inflammation of the bronchi, or airways, by repeated smoke inhalation causes the overproduction of mucus, the American Lung Association says on its website. This obstructs breathing, and a cough develops in an attempt to clear the airways.
While the health problems posed by bronchitis can be mitigated by quitting cigarettes, those related to the second stage of COPD, emphysema, cannot. Permanent damage to the alveoli, or air sacs in the lungs, creates severe breathing restrictions. COPD is the fourth-leading cause of death in the United States. Cigarette smoking is deemed responsible for 80 percent of those deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Heart Disease
Heart disease and complications from stroke, both of which involve clotting in the blood vessels, represent the first and third greatest causes of death in America. The CDC reports that smoking is a definitive cause of these conditions and the health problems leading to them. They include atherosclerosis, peripheral vascular disease and aneurysms.
Infant Death
The CDC also isolates smoking as a cause of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), via secondhand smoke. Tobacco use or passive smoke inhalation by the mother during pregnancy transmits toxins to her fetus through the placental blood flow. Infants who contact cigarette smoke after delivery can also die from SIDS as a result.
Other Cancers
The incidence of organ cancers other than those of the lung caused by cigarette smoking is lower than lung cancer but can also be traced to smoking. The carcinogens in tobacco smoke can cause cancer growth in the mouth, esophagus, stomach and kidney, according to the CDC.
