On the harmful effects of tobacco consumption on the body

In the life of modern society, problems associated with smoking have become especially acute. It is especially widespread among young people. Bad habits have a negative impact on the life of society as a whole, as well as on the life and activities of an individual individually. At the moment, this problem has become truly global. According to statistics, the spread of bad habits on a large scale, in hotel countries, is associated with the instability of the political and economic situation, with the presence of a large number of crises and the imperfection of the political and economic mechanism.

In relation to our country, this problem is especially relevant and its roots go deep into the history of our people, and its spread is also associated with the low culture of society. This problem must be fought not only by society. We have to know the world scenario and then start working on it.

   More and more of my friends, acquaintances are drawn into this habit. Many can no longer imagine their life without a cigarette. I wondered what the spread of smoking among young people was in the Lyceum and in general in Russia and other countries of the world. I was also interested in the effect of smoking not only on the health of a young smoker, but also on the health of his future children. In addition, smoking harms the country’s economy, which also became the object of research.


   1. Harm of smoking, its detrimental effect on health
   Research has proven the harm of smoking. The smoke of tobacco leaf like grabba leaf contains more than 30 toxic substances: Nicotine, Carbon dioxide, Carbon monoxide, Hydrocyanic acid, Ammonia, Tar substances, Organic acids and others.

1-2 packs of cigarettes contain a lethal dose of nicotine. The smoker is saved by the fact that this dose is introduced into the body not immediately, but fractionally. Statistics say: compared to non-smokers, long-term smokers are 13 times more likely to develop angina pectoris, 12 times more often – myocardial infarction, 10 times more often – stomach ulcers. Smokers make up 96 – 100% of all lung cancer patients. Every seventh smoker for a long time suffers from Obliterating endarteritis – a serious ailment of the blood vessels.

Tobacco products are made from dried tobacco leaves, which contain proteins, carbohydrates, mineral salts, fiber, enzymes, fatty acids and others. Among them, it is important to note two groups of substances hazardous to humans – nicotine and isoprenoids.

In terms of the quantitative content in tobacco leaves and the strength of action on various organs and systems of a person, nicotine takes first place. It enters the body together with tobacco smoke, which contains, in addition to nicotine, irritating substances, including carcinogenic (Benzpyren and Dibenzpyren, that is, contributing to the occurrence of malignant tumors, a lot of carbon dioxide – 9.5% (in the atmospheric air – 0.046% ) and carbon monoxide – 5% (it is not in the atmospheric air).

Nicotine is a nerve poison. In experiments on animals and observations on humans, it was found that nicotine in small doses excites nerve cells, promotes increased respiration and heart rate, heart rhythm disturbances, nausea and vomiting. In large doses, it inhibits and then paralyzes the activity of the cells of the central nervous system, including the vegetative one. A disorder of the nervous system is manifested by a decrease in working capacity, trembling of hands, and a weakening of memory.

Nicotine also acts on the endocrine glands, in particular on the adrenal glands, which at the same time secrete harmonic into the blood – Adrenaline, which causes vasospasm, increased blood pressure and increased heart rate. Having a detrimental effect on the gonads, nicotine contributes to the development of sexual weakness in men – impotence! Therefore, her treatment begins with the fact that the patient is offered to stop smoking.

Smoking is especially harmful for children and adolescents. The nervous and circulatory systems that are not yet strong react painfully to tobacco.

In addition to nicotine, other constituents of tobacco smoke also have a negative effect. When carbon monoxide enters the body, oxygen starvation develops, due to the fact that carbon monoxide combines more easily with hemoglobin than oxygen and is delivered with blood to all human tissues and organs. Statistics show that in comparison with non-smokers, long-term smokers are 13 times more likely to suffer from heart disease, 10 times more likely to have stomach ulcers. Smokers account for 96 – 100% of all lung cancer patients. Every seventh smoker for a long time is sick – a serious ailment of the blood vessels.

Nicotine belongs to nerve poisons, in small doses it excites nerve cells, promotes increased respiration and heart rate. Normally, the pulse rate is 65-70 beats per minute, after a smoked cigarette it increases by 10-20 beats. In large doses, it inhibits and then paralyzes the activity of the cells of the central nervous system, including the vegetative one. A disorder of the nervous system is manifested by a decrease in working capacity, trembling of hands, and a weakening of memory.

When smoking, a large amount of carbon monoxide enters the bloodstream, which forms carboxyhemoglobin with hemoglobin – a stable compound that does not participate in oxygen transport, as a result of which oxygen starvation of the brain occurs. In addition, in smokers, blood vessels gradually become less elastic and their lumen narrower, which also reduces the nutrition of the brain. A smoker spends 2 hours more on memorizing lessons than a nonsmoker.

Nicotine also affects the endocrine glands, in particular the adrenal glands, which, at the same time, release a hormone into the bloodstream – adrenaline, which causes vasospasm, increased blood pressure and increased heart rate. Having a detrimental effect on the gonads, nicotine contributes to the development of sexual weakness in men – impotence! Therefore, her treatment begins with the fact that the patient is offered to stop smoking.

The experiment found that 70% of mice that inhaled tobacco smoke developed malignant lung tumors. People who smoke are 20 times more likely to develop cancer than non-smokers. The longer a person smokes, the more chances he has of dying from this serious illness. Smokers often develop cancer of the lower lip due to the carcinogenic effect of the extract accumulating in the mouthpiece of the pipe.

Smoking can also be the main cause of persistent vasospasm of the lower extremities, affecting mainly men. This disease leads to malnutrition, gangrene and ultimately to amputation of the lower limb.

The digestive tract, especially the teeth and the mucous membrane of the mouth, also suffer from the substances contained in tobacco smoke. Nicotine increases the secretion of gastric juice, which causes aching pain in the stomach, nausea and vomiting.

Smoking destroys vitamin C, and to replenish it after smoking 20 cigarettes, you need to eat 4 kg of oranges.

Smoking affects lung function. They cannot fully fulfill their main function – inhalation and exhalation, since tar is formed during combustion, which ultimately settles in the lungs and they become less elastic. In a smoker who smokes 1 pack a day, up to 1 liter of tar passes through the lungs after 30 years of smoking.

Approximately 25% of regular cigarette smokers will die prematurely due to smoking. Many of this number could live 10, 20 or 30 years longer, i.e. in this case, the average loss of years of life is significant. Those who die due to smoking will, on average, lose 10-15 years of their lives.

   The opinion is erroneous that if you smoke one cigarette for two or three, then there will be less harm to the body. In fact, the one who smokes the last cigarette gets more harm, since the most harmful tar, the most harmful products of tobacco distillation are concentrated in the last third of the cigarette, thus leaving your friend or girlfriend to smoke a cigarette, you thereby invite them to try the most concentrated mixture of toxic substances. Therefore, think about when you ask to leave to smoke or you are asked to do it.

   The impact of smoking on human health

   The components of tobacco smoke include toxic substances (nicotine, formic acid, acetaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide, acetone, carbon monoxide, ammonia) and carcinogens (cadmium, benzene, naphthylamine, nitrosamines, toluidine, phenol, formaldehyde, benzopyrene, polroponium, 210, nitrop vinyl chloride, urethane).
   Experts distinguish 3 stages of smoking:
   · psychological dependence
   · psychophysiological dependence
   · physiological dependence
   Types of smoking behavior:
   People think that smoking helps them
   · stimulate mental activity
   · concentrate attention (focus)
   · Relax, have a rest
   · communicate
   · have fun
   · reduce weight
   · live
   The assessment of smoking as a risk factor for the development of diseases is carried out according to the smoking index (IC):

IC = number of cigarettes smoked per day x 12.
At IC> 140, the risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases extremely high.

Nicotine is a narcotic substance in tobacco. Efforts to slow down the tobacco epidemic are often thwarted by the heavy reliance of tobacco users on their drug. Some addiction experts consider tobacco to be the most potent addictive drug, worse than heroin or cocaine. The report by the Chief Medical Officer of the United States, entitled “Nicotine Addiction”, concludes: “The pharmacological and behavioral processes that determine addiction to tobacco are similar to those that determine addiction to drugs such as heroin and cocaine.”

Nicotine occurs naturally in tobacco plants and is highly toxic in large quantities. The dose of nicotine received from smoking is too low to cause acute poisoning, although there is a serious risk of acute poisoning for children who ingest cigarettes. Novice smokers may experience the unpleasant toxic effects of nicotine, but tolerance soon develops as a result of chronic tobacco use.

The absorption of nicotine in the body depends on the pH levels of the intake. The absorption of nicotine from acidic cigarette smoke occurs in the lungs. Alkaline tobacco smoke from pipes and cigars allows nicotine to be absorbed through the mucous membranes in the mouth. Smokeless tobacco products and nicotine gum (smoking cessation) are specially formulated to facilitate oral absorption. Absorption through the lungs is faster. From the lungs, nicotine quickly enters the bloodstream and brain. Nicotine works through special cell formations, or receptors, located at the junctions of nerve cells, or synapses, in the brain and muscle tissue.

These receptors have the ability to recognize and respond to nicotine when it is present in the body. As a result, the work of the synapse changes, that is, the transmission of a nerve impulse is distorted, which controls the state of blood vessels, muscle tissue, glands of external or internal secretion. When the receptors signal the presence of nicotine, blood pressure rises and peripheral circulation slows down. The waves in the brain are altered and a variety of endocrine and metabolic effects are kicked off.

The mental and physical condition of the smoker, as well as the situation in which smoking occurs, can affect how an individual cigarette affects psychological perception and physiological responses, for example, it can cause feelings of both relaxation and alertness.
Tobacco smoke contains over 4000 components, many of which are pharmacologically active, toxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic. Tobacco smoke is highly complex and contains thousands of chemicals that are released into the air as particles or gases. The particulate phase is composed of tar (which in turn is composed of many chemicals), nicotine, and benzo (a) pyrene. The gas phase consists of carbon monoxide, ammonium, dimethylnitrosamine, formaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide and acrolein. Some of these substances have pronounced irritant properties, and about 60 of them are known or suspected carcinogens (substances that cause cancer).

Tar is the most dangerous chemical in cigarettes. While people primarily smoke due to the effects of nicotine on the brain, they die mainly from exposure to tar. When smoke enters the mouth as a concentrated aerosol, it carries with it millions of particles per cubic centimeter. As it cools, it condenses and forms a gum that settles in the airways of the lungs. Resin is a substance that causes lung cancer and disease. The resin causes paralysis of the cleansing process in the lungs and damages the alveolar sacs. It also reduces the effectiveness of the immune system.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless gas present in high concentrations in cigarette smoke. Its ability to bind with hemoglobin is 200 times higher than that of oxygen, and therefore it replaces oxygen. As a result, an increased level of carbon monoxide in a smoker reduces the ability of the blood to carry oxygen, which affects the functioning of all body tissues. The brain and muscles (including the heart) cannot function at their full strength without sufficient oxygen supply, and in order to compensate for the reduced oxygen supply to the body, the heart and lungs are forced to work harder, which causes circulatory problems. Carbon monoxide also damages the walls of the arteries and increases the risk of narrowing of the coronary vessels, leading to heart attacks.

Hydrogen cyanide has a direct deleterious effect on the cilia of the bronchial tree, part of the natural cleansing mechanism of the lungs in humans. Damage to this cleansing system can lead to the buildup of toxic agents in the lungs, thus increasing the likelihood of developing disease. Other toxic agents in tobacco smoke that directly affect the cilia in the lungs include acrolein, ammonium, nitrogen dioxide, and formaldehyde.

   The radioactive components found in very high concentrations in tobacco smoke include polonium-210 and potassium-40. In addition, there are radioactive components such as radium-226, radium-228 and thorium-228. It has been clearly established that radioactive components are carcinogenic.

   2. The harmful effects of smoking on human health
   Tobacco smoking is one of the most common bad habits, characterized by regular consumption of tobacco products. Tobacco smoke is aerosols consisting of liquid and solid particles in suspension. It contains nicotine, carbon monoxide, ammonia, hydrocyanic acid, hydrogen cyanide, acetone and a significant amount of substances that can cause the formation of malignant tumors. Nicotine is the most dangerous. The body gets used to it quickly, so acute poisoning with it has a very short phase. Its signs are: dizziness, cough, nausea, bitterness in the mouth. Sometimes they are joined by weakness, malaise, pallor of the face.

Carbon monoxide, which dissolves in the smoker’s blood, leads to oxygen starvation of the body, from which the heart suffers first of all.
But the pulmonary system suffers most from exposure to tobacco smoke. Toxic substances from tobacco smoke gradually destroy the lung’s defense mechanisms, causing lung disease. In addition to irritation of the mucous membrane of the larynx, trachea, bronchi and alveoli (pulmonary vesicles), a chronic respiratory disease develops – smoker’s bronchitis. It affects 80% of smokers. The consequences of smoking for the female body, in particular for its reproductive function, are extremely unfavorable.

The child of a woman who smokes at birth weighs an average of 250 g less than that of a non-smoker; 2 times more often women who smoke have miscarriages, inferior and stillborn children are born.

People who smoke are often disrespectful to anyone who does not smoke. Only this can explain the fact that most of them, neglecting the health of others, smoke anywhere. Of course, everyone who does not smoke suffers from this. Tobacco smoke causes them headache, malaise, decreased performance, rapid fatigue, exacerbation of upper respiratory tract diseases.

A non-smoker, being in the same room as a smoker for only one hour, essentially smokes half a cigarette each time. Observations have shown that he also has negative changes in the activity of the nervous system, the composition of blood and urine is disturbed. Passive smokers are also at risk of developing malignant neoplasms not only in the lungs, but also in other organs. Passive smoking is especially dangerous for children.

Smoking is not just a bad habit. Over time, a person who did not stop in time develops addiction to nicotine. The effect of various poisons on the human body is destructive. However, this does not appear instantly. The effects of smoking are slow to form and lead to various diseases.

It is especially dangerous for children and adolescents to start smoking. The nervous and circulatory systems that are not yet strong react painfully to tobacco.

It must be emphasized that smoking is not a natural requirement of the body like food or sleep. Smoking tobacco is also not a sign of a strong personality and an adult. So what drives adolescence to a cigarette? Smoking initiation, as a rule, occurs in adolescence, when you want to experiment, when there is a need for self-affirmation, the desire to identify with the surrounding group, create your own image, feel more mature, and finally, as a protest against the attitudes of parents or society.

There are four stages in the smoking initiation process. Recognition occurs in early childhood when the child sees adults smoking around him. As a passive smoker, he gets used to the smell and appearance of cigarettes. Over time, there is a desire to try it yourself. Typically, the experiment begins in a group and occurs with peer approval. The fear of being rejected by them intensifies the desire. The desire for independence from others leads to the continuation of experiments. There is a belief that smoking calms the nerves and improves mood. A habit develops, caused by the body’s addiction to the action of nicotine, which turns into nicotine addiction.

   Unlike drug addicts and alcoholics, smokers are not prone to antisocial behavior. Therefore, the main social consequences are:
   1. Premature death.
   2. The birth of weakened offspring.
   3. Violation of relationships between people.
   4. Increased risk of diseases of internal organs.

These are the data of studies that were conducted from 1982 to 1992. The 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke cause irreparable harm to the health of not only smokers, but also those around them. The cardiovascular system is especially affected. All in the same study, there are sad statistics regarding married couples. The death rate from heart disease in the family, where one of the spouses smokes, is 20% higher than in non-smoking families. The statistics have pushed many states to formally ban smoking in public places.

Since the introduction of tobacco in the past, there have been repeated attempts to ban smoking. So, the Spanish Queen Isabella the 1st cursed him, Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov ordered to cut off the nose of everyone who smokes or 60 strokes in the footsteps, the Turkish Sultan Murad IV banned smoking on pain of death, in England, Queen Elizabeth 1 equated smokers with thieves and they were led down the street with a rope around their necks. The hero of Goethe’s work “Faust” Mephistopheles offers to smoke, praising tobacco, says: “Useful herb, not some burdock”, to which Faust replied – “Don’t. It’s fun for fools.”

Many people consider smoking a habit, believing that it is very easy to quit smoking, that it is only a matter of volitional effort. This is incorrect for two reasons. First, habits are sometimes very difficult to change. Secondly, smoking is not just a habit, but also a certain form of drug addiction. Despite the fact that smoking tobacco is a strong habit and also a form of drug addiction, millions of people have managed to quit smoking. In the UK, the number of smokers has decreased by about 10 million over the past 10-15 years. This means that almost 2,000 people quit smoking every day!

The experiment found that 70% of mice that inhaled tobacco smoke developed malignant lung tumors. People who smoke are 20 times more likely to develop cancer than non-smokers. The longer a person smokes, the more chances he has of dying from this serious illness. Statistical studies have shown that smokers often have cancerous swelling of other organs – the esophagus, stomach, larynx, kidneys. Smokers often develop cancer of the lower lip as a result of the carcinogenic effect of the extract accumulating in the mouthpiece of the pipe.

Very often, smoking leads to the development of chronic bronchitis, accompanied by a constant cough and bad breath. As a result of chronic inflammation, the bronchi expand, bronchiectasis is formed with severe consequences – pneumosclerosis, emphysema, with the so-called cor pulmonale, leading to circulatory failure. This determines the appearance of a heavy smoker: hoarse voice, puffy face, shortness of breath.

The role of smoking is also great in the occurrence of tuberculosis. So, 95 out of 100 people suffering from it, at the time of the onset of the disease, smoked.

Often smokers experience heart pain. This is due to a spasm of the coronary vessels supplying the heart muscle with the development of angina pectoris (coronary heart failure). Myocardial infarction in smokers occurs 3 times more often than non-smokers.

Smoking can be the main cause of persistent vasospasm of the lower extremities, contributing to the development of obliterating endarteritis, which affects mainly men. This disease leads to malnutrition, gangrene and ultimately to amputation of the lower limb.

These signs can be a manifestation of gastritis and gastric ulcer, which occur in smokers much more often than in non-smokers. So, for example, among men, stomach ulcer disease, 96 – 97% smoked.
Smoking can cause nicotine amblyopia. A patient suffering from this ailment develops partial or complete blindness. This is a very formidable disease in which even vigorous treatment is not always successful.

   Smokers endanger not only themselves but also those around them. In medicine, even the term “passive smoking” has appeared. A significant concentration of nicotine is determined in the body of non-smokers after being in a smoky and unventilated room.
   Lung Cancer
   Smoking is the cause of a third of all deaths from malignant diseases, tumors. If you smoke more than 10 cigarettes daily, you are 24 times more likely to develop lung cancer.
   Chronical bronchitis
   In this condition, the airways leading to the lungs are narrowed and damaged, and most of the lung tissue is destroyed. By the time shortness of breath appears, almost the entire surface of the bronchial mucosa is destroyed. Last year alone, more than 30,000 people died from chronic bronchitis in our country. You can be next.
   Diseases of the heart and blood vessels
   The reason for the sudden death of people, against the background of general well-being, is vasospasm as a result of smoking and as a result of coronary heart disease (IHD). In our country, in the blooming age, the main cause of death is coronary heart disease. People who smoke are twice as likely to die as non-smokers.
   The effect of smoking on sexual function
   Cases of impotence in men are 3 times more common than in non-smokers. Frigid women are 2.5 times more common among smokers than non-smokers This is due to the fact that nicotine contributes to vasoconstriction of the genital organs.
   The effect of smoking on a woman’s health Women who smoke
   are more likely to be infertile, and they become less likely to get pregnant than nonsmokers. In addition, menopause occurs faster in the former. This suggests that smoking adversely affects ovarian function. Women who smoke have a slightly increased risk of spontaneous abortion and bleeding during pregnancy. Women who smoke age several times faster than non-smokers.
   The effect of smoking on fetal development
   The body weight of a child born to a smoking mother is about 200 grams less than that of a non-smoker. Children born to women who smoke have a slightly higher risk of dying at an early age. This is due to the weakening and delayed development of the fetus due to the toxins that make up the cigarette.
  The smoke of cigarettes has a disgusting odor, which is firmly eaten into clothes, permeates the skin and breath. You have every chance of getting yellow-gray teeth, halitosis, which will not be relieved by rinsing or chewing gum – kissing a smoker is like licking an ashtray. The skin of the hands and face, due to nicotine, will acquire a yellow-gray color. The skin of the face will resemble a wrinkled baked apple.
   Passive smoking
   Nicotine poisoning affects not only a person suffering from smoking, but all those around him in close proximity.
   Ten tips for those who decide to undergo treatment for nicotine addiction:
   1. Come up with ways to refuse the proposed cigarettes and constantly practice them.
   2. Learn to just say no – you don’t have to explain to anyone why you quit smoking.
   3. When you already have a small victory behind you, try not to educate others. Hardly anyone will like it.
   4. Avoid familiar situations when the temptation to smoke is especially great.
   5. If your parents or relatives smoke in front of you, ask them to set aside some other place for this.
   6. Consider whether you should hang out with friends who do not respect your decision to quit smoking.
   7. Remove all smoking related items from the house.
   8. Introduce a healthy routine into your daily routine and try to stick to it.
   9. Ask your friends to support you and not make fun of you.
   10. Reward yourself for every day you beat smoking.
   Ten tips: how to help a loved one quit smoking:
   1. Do not try to educate them, it is better to talk to them – explain to them how much you worry about them.
   2. Find out how you can help them.
   3. Listen to them and try to understand why they think they need to smoke.
   4. Help with advice. some people do not know where and how to be treated.
   5. No need to take on the role of their personal guard. If you follow their every move, then you will show that they are weak-willed and cannot take care of themselves. This will only provoke unnecessary anxiety.
   6. Don’t put pressure on them. Try to be supportive.
   7. If someone broke off and smoked a cigarette, do not shame him, but on the contrary, encourage and advise him to try to recover further.
   8. Help create an environment with the least provocative factors.
   9. Choose non-smoking areas.
   10. Reward for every small victory.
   Ways to overcome tobacco smoking:
   1. Psychotherapy:
   · sedative
   · regulating
   · stimulating
   · eliminating the stereotype
   2. Substitution therapy
   · autogenous training
   · medications
   · reflexology
   3. Aversion therapy
   · reflexology
   · Medicines
   4. Auxiliary
   · nutrition
   · reflexology
   · vitamins
   The advantages of not smoking over smoking tobacco:
   · preservation of health
   · attractive appearance
   · preservation of working capacity
   · getting a prestigious job
   · do not harm yourself and your loved ones
   · don’t deprive yourself of life pleasures
   · don’t waste time
   · don’t spend money on what is needed later

   Conclusion
   Smoking is a social problem of society, both for its smokers and non-smokers. For the first – the problem is to quit smoking, for the second – to avoid the influence of the smoking society and not “get infected” with their habit, and also – to preserve your health from smoking products, since the substances entering the smoke exhaled by smokers are not much safer than if a person he smoked himself and took in nicotine and many other things that go into a lit cigarette.
   It’s no secret how dangerous smoking is, but around 15 billion cigarettes are smoked around the world every day. An estimated $ 50 billion a year is spent on smoking-related illnesses in the United States. This means that in 1993, for every pack of cigarettes purchased, an average of about $ 2.06 was spent on smoking-related illnesses.
   In highly developed countries, there is a program for the issuance of social security benefits. Considering that both smokers and non-smokers are the objects of this social study, this requires large expenditures on the part of the states conducting such programs. The reason for the implementation of such programs is the fact that the products of cigarette combustion have a harmful effect on the environmental situation and the country and the world as a whole. Many different measures can be applied to reduce smoking, including severely restricting smoking areas, fines, laws for complaints from nonsmokers, government health facilities that specialize in treating this type of problem, etc. Speaking about helping non-smokers, we can offer free treatment and sanatorium rest to those suffering from tobacco allergies and from the contamination of the body with cigarette smoke products.
   If we consider this problem in the light of a separate social group, then one of the most urgent will be this problem among secondary school students. Since the influence of peers on the unformed consciousness of a student is very great, there are many reasons for concern. In addition to the influence of others, there is a personal desire for “hasty growing up” inherent in many modern children. Influence can also come from parents, as a bad example, and simply from adults who do not find anything wrong with this. Children need more attention, both from parents and from teachers, who need to observe more of the aspirations and inclinations of students.