Quit Smoking And Raise Your Life Expectancy
Melody B. Henry
Smoking is not only continuously bad for your health, but also
lowers your life expectancy. Every time you smoke a cigarette,
it changes the way your body functions. This includes the
cardiovascular system, lungs, and other important parts of your
body. The outcome of smoking can
become fatal because of the chemicals you are putting into your
system. By deciding to quit smoking, you will raise your life
expectancy.
One of the diseases that smoking causes is cancer. It is known
that smoking is responsible for 30% of the deaths that are
related to cancer in the United States. These cancers include
lung, larynx, oral cavity, esophagus, kidney, pancreatic,
cervical and bladder cancers. The chemicals found in cigarettes
are the cancer-causing agents. There are over sixty kinds of
substances in cigarettes that relate directly to cancer. Carbon
monoxide, tar, arsenic, and lead are some of the main ingredients
found in cigarettes that add to the development of cancer in
someone who smokes.
Other problems caused by smoking which may become fatal include
high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, stroke and heart
failure. The toxins from cigarettes move through your body,
eventually causing normally functioning parts of your system to
break down. For example, in your arteries, plaques will begin to
form, which narrows the blood vessels. These blood vessels
supply blood and oxygen to your heart. If they
become to narrow, it causes the supply to become less or cut off
completely, which can be fatal. Heart disease is the number one
cause of
death in the United States, and is often attributed to smoking.
Lung disease can lower your life expectancy, and is also often
attributed to smoking. Two types of lung disease caused by
smoking are emphysema and bronchitis. Emphysema is caused by the
air sacs in the lungs becoming damaged. These air sacs are
responsible for the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide. The
chemicals that are in cigarettes move into the lungs, damaging
the walls of the alveoli. This then causes the sacs to become
larger and less effective in exchanging the air that the lungs
need. They are known to be weaker, collapse, and don't allow the
lungs to properly inflate. The first, symptom of this lung
disease is breathlessness. However, if you continue to smoke, it
will continue to break down the air sacs, eventually leaving you
unable to breathe. Bronchitis is caused by the structure of the
lungs being changed, which impairs the air flow.
Your life expectancy will slowly begin to expand when you quit
smoking. How fast this happens is in direct relation to how long
you have smoked, how much you have smoked, when you began smoking
and whether you were sick when you decided to quit smoking. The
sooner that you decide to quit smoking, the more likely you will
be able to prolong your life expectancy. Eventually, the
chemicals that have moved through your body will be removed from
your system. This will allow the normal body functions to be
restored. It will also allow the
once damaged tissue and nerves to begin to grow back. Your immune
system, in return, will be able to work more efficiently, allowing
your body to be better able to fight off diseases.
When you decide to quit smoking, air will move more easily
through the lungs, and the air sacs will eventually return to
their normal size. Blood vessels will stop narrowing, and
twenty-four hours after you quit smoking, your cardiovascular
system will begin to move at a normal pace.
By deciding to quit smoking, you are allowing yourself to prolong
your life and live healthier.Smoking has proven to be fatal. The
only way to change your life expectancy is to allow yourself
to quit smoking.
Brought up with a parent who smoked, Ms Henry has secondhand smoke-related health problems.As a result, she is passionate about helping parents put children before cigarettes. For her free newsletter go to http://www.dreambuildercoach.com
 |
