GENERAL HEALTH EFFECTS OF
SMOKING
Smoking harms your body in many different
ways. It damages the immune system and increases the
risk of infections. Smokers tend to be less healthy
than nonsmokers.
Many illnesses in smokers last longer than in nonsmokers,
and smokers are more likely to be absent from work because
of illnesses, and are more likely to require longer
hospitalizations than nonsmokers.
Smokers have a greater risk of complications and
have a lower survival rate after surgery because of
damage to the body’s defenses. They are at increased
risk of infections, pneumonia, and other respiratory
complications.
As you age, your bones become less dense, leading
to a greater risk of hip fracture. The bone density
of smokers tends to be lower than that of nonsmokers.
Smoking causes peripheral artery disease that can
affect the blood flow throughout the entire body. In
peripheral artery disease, the arteries that supply
blood to the legs are narrowed by
atherosclerosis.
Although atherosclerosis is more commonly thought
of as a heart disease, it can affect arteries anywhere
in the body, including those in the legs and brain.
Healthy arteries are strong, flexible and elastic, and
the inner walls are smooth, allowing blood to flow freely
through them to nourish tissues and organs.
Smoking causes many types of cancer, which is the
second leading cause of death among Americans. It is
responsible for one of every four deaths in the United
States. Each year more than half a million Americans,
more than 1,500 people a day, die of cancer.
Cancer was one of the first diseases linked to smoking.
In 1964, the first Surgeon General’s report on smoking
and health concluded that smoking causes lung cancer.
In later years, the list of diseases linked to smoking
has grown.
To understand more about the diseases caused by smoking,
choose the specific organ systems you would like to
explore further.
