Smoking early in life may lead to much illness later. People who start smoking before age 21 build an ingrained habit and have a hard time ending the smoking routine. About 25 percent of teens in America smoke. Also, around 30 percent of people who start smoking when young will continue to smoke and are likely to have an early death from a smoking-related illness, notes MedlinePlus.
Depression
Teen smokers also experience more depression than nonsmokers. Cigarettes make you feel less energetic due to compromised health. Smoking harms the function of the lungs, heart, brain and other organs, which strongly damages the overall energy level of a smoker. This may lead to feelings of depression.
Respiratory Problems
The American Cancer Society reports that teens who smoke have more respiratory diseases and more severe bouts of the flu and colds. Smoking ups the risk for pneumonia and bronchitis. Teen smokers often also develop a lingering cough. If you smoke as a teen, your lungs do not grow or function as well as nonsmokers.
Nicotine Addiction
Teen smokers develop an addiction to nicotine just like adult smokers. They may try over and over to quit smoking without success. If you try repeatedly to stop smoking and fail, it may impact your self-esteem.
Danger to Future Health
Smoking as a teen also compromises your future health and longevity. Teen smokers who maintain the smoking habit into adulthood may experience a stroke, dental issues like loss of teeth, hearing difficulties, heart disease, vision issues like macular degeneration, and an early death.
Toxic Chemicals
The chemicals in cigarettes damage teens' health. If you smoke as a teen you are inhaling dangerous chemicals like arsenic, methane, carbon monoxide, butane, ammonia, hydrogen cyanide and up to 4,000 other toxic chemicals, notes YoungWomensHealth.org.
Grooming Issues
Smoking has a negative impact on personal grooming. It discolors the teeth, makes the breath smell foul and leaves a smoky smell in hair and on skin.
Damage to Alveoli
When you smoke as a teen, you permanently destroy the alveoli, which are air sacks that help move oxygen into the bloodstream, reports YoungWomensHealth.org. They will not grow back once they are killed by smoking. Thus, teens who smoke never again have fully functioning lungs.
Damage to Cilia
If you smoke as a teen, you damage the cilia in the lungs, reports YoungWomensHealth.org. The cilia are like hairs that move debris out of your lungs. Thus, when the cilia malfunction due to smoking, things that come into the lungs like cigarette smoke debris, pollen, and dust cannot be removed and they eventually turn into a tar-like substance.
Anxiety
Teens who use cigarettes have more anxiety disorders and panic attacks than nonsmokers. Nicotine is a stimulant. It may induce a high level of anxiety in teens. The brains of teens are still developing. If you choose to smoke as a teen, you are subjecting the brain to damaging toxins.
