Fast Facts
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Women and Smoking
- Smoking harms nearly every organ in your body. - Learn More
- Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. - Learn More
- Cigarette smoking kills an estimated 142,000 women in the United States every year. - Learn More
- Since 1950, lung cancer deaths among women have increased by more than 600 percent. - Learn More
- The risk of dying from lung cancer is about 12 times higher among women who smoke cigarettes compared with women who never smoked. - Learn More
- Heart disease is the #1 killer of women in the United States. Middle aged smokers are 3 times more likely to die from coronary heart disease than non-smokers. - Learn More
- Women who smoke have more heart attacks, cancers, oral health problems, and lung conditions. - Learn More
- Lung cancer kills more women every year than breast cancer. - Learn More
- Working women smokers report more days lost from work from illness and injury than working women who do not smoke. - Learn More
- Smoking may affect your ability to get pregnant. - Learn More
- Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, premature or early delivery, and infants born with low birth weight. - Learn More
- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) occurs more often among babies of smoking mothers. - Learn More
- Postmenopausal women who smoke have lower bone density than women who never smoked. - Learn More
- Women who smoke have an increased risk for hip fracture than women who never smoked. - Learn More
- Women who smoke have an increased risk for other cancers, including cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx (voice box), esophagus, pancreas, kidney, bladder, and uterine cervix. - Learn More
- Women who smoke double their risk for developing coronary heart disease and increase by more than ten-fold their likelihood of dying from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. - Learn More
How Quitting Affects Your Body
- 20 minutes after quitting, your heart rate drops. - Learn More
- 12 hours after quitting, the carbon monoxide (a gas that can be toxic) in your blood drops to normal. - Learn More
- 2 weeks to 3 months after quitting, your heart attack risk begins to drop and your lungs are working better. - Learn More
- 1 to 9 months after quitting, Your coughing and shortness of breath decrease. - Learn More
- 1 year after quitting, your added risk for heart disease is half that of a smoker's. - Learn More
- 5 years after quitting, your risk of having a stroke is the same as someone who doesn't smoke. - Learn More
- 10 years after quitting, your risk of dying from lung cancer is half that of a smoker's. Your risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas also decreases. - Learn More
- 5 years after quitting, your risk of heart disease is now the same as someone who doesn't smoke. - Learn More
- Most people only gain 6-8 pounds when they quit. - Learn More
- Quitting smoking before the age of 65 reduces by nearly half a person’s risk of dying of a smoking-related disease. - Learn More
- Unlike so many other conditions or diseases, you have the power to protect yourself from smoking-related illnesses or death. The benefits of not smoking start within days of quitting. - Learn More
- Don't get discouraged if you start smoking again! Remember that many women try 2 or 3 times to quit before they give up smoking for good. Think about what helped you and what didn't the last time you tried quitting. And ask your family, friends, coworkers - Learn More
- Unlike so many other health conditions or diseases, you have the power to prevent yourself from suffering from smoking-related illnesses or death. The benefits of not smoking start within days of quitting. - Learn More
Teens and Smoking
- Teens who smoke are more likely than teens who don't smoke to use alcohol and other drugs. Smoking is also related to other risky behaviors, such as fighting and engaging in unprotected sex. - Learn More
- Way more young people don't smoke than do. - Learn More
- The younger you begin to smoke, the more likely you are to be an adult smoker. Young people who start smoking at an earlier age are more likely to develop long-term nicotine addiction than people who start later. - Learn More
- Children who use tobacco cough and have asthma attacks more often, leading to more sick days, more doctor bills, and poorer athletic performance. Teens who smoke have smaller lungs and weaker hearts than teens who don't smoke. - Learn More
- Parents matter and do make a difference! Despite the influence of movies, music and TV, parents have the greatest influence on their children. - Learn More
- Be a good role model - don't smoke and quit if you do. Try not to smoke around your children. This gives them a mixed message. - Learn More
- Your children are never too young to learn about the dangers of tobacco. Start talking to them at age 5 or 6 and teach them how to say no. - Learn More
- Your children are never too young to learn about the dangers of tobacco. Start talking to them at age 5 or 6 and teach them how to say no. - Learn More
- Kids who use tobacco may: Cough and have asthma attacks more often and develop respiratory problems leading to more sick days, more doctor bills, and poorer athletic performance. Be more likely to use alcohol and other drugs such as cocaine and marijuana. - Learn More
- Young people vastly underestimate the addictiveness of nicotine. Of daily smokers who think that they will not smoke in five years, nearly 75 percent are still smoking five to six years later. - Learn More
- Cigarette smoking causes significant health problems among children and adolescents including coughing, shortness of breath, production of phlegm, more respiratory illnesses, reduced physical fitness, an increased risk for heart disease, decreased lung g - Learn More
- Each day in the United States, approximately 4,000 young people between the ages of 12 and 17 years initiate cigarette smoking - Learn More
- Each day, nearly 4,000 children 12 to 17 years of age start smoking; of these, nearly 1,140 will become regular smokers. - Learn More
- Teens who smoke have smaller lungs and weaker hearts and get sick more often than teens who don't smoke. - Learn More
- Teens who smoke are more likely than nonsmoking teens to use alcohol and other drugs. - Learn More
Population Statistics about Smoking
- An estimated 18.1% of American women 18 years or older are current cigarette smokers. - Learn More
- About 4,000 people between the ages of 12 and 17 years try their first cigarette each day. - Learn More
- Every day, about 1,140 young people between the ages of 12 and 17 become daily smokers. - Learn More
- More than one out of every five high school girls is a current smoker. - Learn More
- The three leading smoking-related causes of death in women are lung cancer (45,000), heart disease (40,000), and chronic lung disease (42,000). - Learn More
- Each year 438,000 Americans die from smoking-related illnesses. - Learn More
- Secondhand smoke causes 150,000–300,000 new cases of bronchitis and pneumonia in children aged less than 18 months. - Learn More
Other Facts about Smoking
- Smoking can wreck lungs and reduce oxygen available for muscles used during sports. - Learn More
- Smokers run slower and can't run as far. - Learn More
- Tobacco smoke can make hair and clothes stink. - Learn More
- Tobacco stains teeth and causes bad breath. - Learn More
- Secondhand smoke causes wheezing, coughing, colds, earaches, and asthma attacks. - Learn More
- Nicotine is as addictive as heroin and cocaine. - Learn More
- Chewing tobacco, snuff, and cigars are not safer than cigarettes. Low-tar and additive-free cigarettes are not safe either. More boys use chewing tobacco or snuff than do girls. - Learn More
- Spit tobacco and cigars are not safe alternatives to cigarettes. Low-tar and additive-free cigarettes are not safe either. - Learn More
- Did you know that cigarettes contain over 4,000 chemicals? - Learn More
Content last updated March 19, 2008.
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