Monday, February 1, 2010

5 Deadly Diseases Caused by Smoking

Smoking is the unhealthiest of all habits and has many fatal outcomes. Many fatal diseases are caused because of smoking besides cancer. Some of the diseases caused by smoking do not lead to death but make life hell because of associated symptoms. A quick search for pictures of smoking diseases in Google will lead to some gruesome results and reveal the ugly side of smoking. In fact if you make a habit to look at the pictures of a smoking disease called gangrene, you might be never tempted to light up another cigarette in your life. Read on to know more about gangrene and other diseases caused by smoking.

1) Gangrene – This disease is caused by smoking due to peripheral vascular disease, a condition wherein the arteries that carry blood to legs or arms become partially or totally blocked by the buildup of fatty material. Smokers are two and a half times more likely to develop this disease than a non-smoker

2) Cancer – Smoking causes cancer of lungs, mouth, throat, bladder, pancreas, kidneys and esophagus. These cancers are caused due to carcinogens in cigarettes

3) Cardiovascular diseases – Diseases related to the heart, blood vessels of the heart and blood vessels including arteries and veins are a major cause of death. Nicotine present in tobacco increases the cholesterol levels in the blood, leads to fatty deposits in the arteries, which causes hardening and blocking of arteries, which increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Common cardiovascular diseases found in smokers are coronary thrombosis, cerebral thrombosis, coronary heart diseases and cerebrovascular diseases such as stroke

4) Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) – It causes health problems such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Emphysema is breathlessness that is caused by damage to air sacs. Chronic bronchitis results in frequent coughing with a lot of mucus. Smoking is to blame for about 80% of COPD cases. These diseases make day to day living very difficult

5) Macular degeneration – This disease is caused by excessive smoking and results in gradual loss of eyesight. Smoking also causes cataract and other eye problems as it affects blood flow to the eyes

Smoking also worsens asthma, blood pressure problems, fertility rate and many other aspects of health which affects your day-to-day life.

To quit smoking, use latest quit smoking drug Chantix.