For decades and with steadily increasing urgency, the Office of the Surgeon General has been warning the American public about the dangers of tobacco smoking. Although millions of Americans have heeded those warnings and stopped smoking, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that tobacco use continues to account for one in every five U.S. deaths annually.
2010 Report
In its 30th report on the dangers of tobacco smoking, issued in December 2010, the Office of the Surgeon General reported that cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals and compounds. Of those, hundreds are toxic and at least 69 are known carcinogens. In perhaps its most alarming observation, the report contends that there is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke, contending that even an occasional cigarette or infrequent exposure to secondhand smoke is harmful.
Tobacco-Related Deaths
In an overview of the health risks associated with tobacco smoking, the CDC offers alarming statistics about tobacco-related mortality in the United States. Tobacco use causes more deaths each year than are caused by the human immunodeficiency virus, alcohol use, illegal drug use, motor vehicle accidents, suicide and murders, combined. The agency also estimates that tobacco smoking is responsible for 90 percent of all deaths caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD.
Coronary Heart Disease
The American Heart Association puts tobacco smoking high on its list of the six independent risk factors for coronary heart disease that can be controlled or modified to some degree. In addition to smoking, these include elevated blood cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, physical inactivity, obesity and diabetes. Smoking alone can lead to heart attack, according to the AHA, and when combined with some of these other risk factors, the probability of disease increases exponentially.
Cancer
The National Cancer Institute says that more than 50 of the chemicals and compounds found in tobacco smoke are known to cause cancer. These include arsenic, benzene, beryllium, cadmium, chromium, ethylene oxide, nickel, polonium-210 and vinyl chloride. Although no definitive proof is yet available, other chemicals in tobacco smoke, including benzo[a]pyrene, formaldehyde and toluene, are strongly suspected as carcinogens. Cancers directly linked to tobacco smoking, according to the NCI, include bladder, cervix, esophagus, kidney, larynx, lung, mouth, pancreas, stomach and throat, as well as acute myeloid leukemia.
Fertility and Pregnancy
Although the risks of tobacco smoking for pregnant women have been widely reported, less has been said about the role that smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke may have on fertility and the possibility of adverse pregnancy outcomes. In its December 2010 report, the Office of the Surgeon General reported that the chemicals in tobacco smoke can damage the DNA in sperm, thus reducing fertility and possibly harming fetal development. Those chemicals also can interfere with the proper functioning of the fallopian tubes, increasing the risk of ectopic pregnancy, low birth weight and miscarriage.
References
- CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Smoking & Tobacco Use: Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking
- Office of the Surgeon General: A Report of the Surgeon General: How Tobacco Smoke Causes Disease
- American Heart Association: Cigarette Smoking and Cardiovascular Diseases
- National Cancer Institute: Fact Sheet: Harms of Smoking and Health Benefits of Quitting
