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What's in a cigarette?
There are hundreds of chemicals in cigarette smoke.
There are three known parts of cigarette smoke that are dangerous to the
person smoking and to those who breathe in the secondhand smoke. The three
are tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide(a poisonous gas).
- Tar breaks down into a sticky substance in the lungs.
- Nicotine is the addictive part of tobacco smoke.
- Carbon monoxide robs your body of oxygen.
Why people smoke?
You are the only one who can answer "why" you smoke.
Taking time to figure out why will help you determine how to quit.
Most people begin smoking as a social behavior.
Why Quit?
The more you smoke, the greater the health risks. Even
an occasional smoker (1 to 4 cigarettes a day) is still at greater risk
for health problems than a nonsmoker. An average smoker smokes 15 to 20
cigarettes a day.
Smoking can cause the following problems:
- Various cancers such as lung, throat and mouth cancer.
- Heart disease
- Problems with having children
- Skin wrinkling
- Difficulty breathing
- Harm others by exposing them to secondhand smoke
Benefits of Quitting
Most health risks can be reversed, some within one year,
others within 10 to 15 years.
- Food tastes better
- Fresher breath
- Less coughing and shortness of breath
- Save more money
- More energy
- You and your clothes smell better
- It's good for loved ones.
- Improved sense of smell
Click on this link to find out more benefits to quitting:
http://www.lungusa.org/tobacco/quit_ben.html
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