StemCell Therapy

Smoking is bad and it can affect almost every aspect of your life. Passive smoking is also as bad as active smoking. In fact, some of the effects of smoking cannot be reversed even after you stop. But if you stop, then, you bring down your risk of many unwanted health complications. A study at Uppsala University and Uppsala Clinical Research Center says that smoking alters several genes that can be associated with health problems for smokers, such as increased risk for cancer and diabetes. The journal Human Molecular Genetics published this study.

Health complications due to smoking is a leading cause of death globally. In fact, cigarette smoking causes more deaths today than any other diseases including HIV, accidents, drug and alcohol abuse and firearm mortality.

Let us take a look at how smoking affects your body.

Cigarettes contain nicotine that can reach your brain within seconds of lighting up. As it is a stimulant, it gives you an energy rush for a while, but once the smoke subsides, it can make your brain feel tired and crave for more kicks of energy and pleasure.

Smoking also alters your brains response to senses such as taste and smell and can make you want to eat less while you smoke. Any time that you do not smoke, your body goes into a withdrawal mode that can have a negative effect on your cognitive abilities and lead to depression, anxiety and restlessness. It can also trigger headaches, blurry vision and insomnia.

Your lungs help to filter out any harmful chemicals that you may inhale, but inhaling smoke over a long period of time can damage your lungs ability to do so. Even though you may cough frequently as a result of smoking, the toxins will still remain inside your lungs and can lead to various respiratory diseases such as cold, flu and other infections.

Smoking can have a significant impact on your digestive system and increases your risk of certain types of cancer, such as cancer of the pancreas, kidneys and the mouth. It can also cause inflammation of the gums, known as gingivitis as well as infection in the gums, also known as periodontitis. It is also directly related to poor oral health, and can cause oral decay, bad breath as well as loss of tooth earlier as compared to those who are not exposed to smoke.

Smoking can directly impact the way your body reacts to insulin and can put you at a higher risk of having insulin resistance. It means that if you are regularly exposed to smoke, your chances of developing type 2 diabetes are very high and you will develop complications related to diabetes faster as compared to those who are not exposed to cigarette smoke.

Smoking can restrict the flow of blood to vital organs in your body and can limit the ability of erection in males. It can also make it more difficult for you to reach an orgasm as your brain does not get enough stimulus from the act.

Smoking can also lead to various complications in your pregnancy, put you at risk of miscarriage, premature delivery and birth defects. Mothers with exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy have a higher risk of having babies who will be prone to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Female smokers are also at a higher risk of reaching menopause earlier than those who do not smoke. They are more prone to cervical cancer.

Text sourced from zliving.com

Published : December 28, 2019 2:40 pm | Updated:December 28, 2019 2:40 pm

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Are you a chain smoker? Beware of blurry vision and diabetes - TheHealthSite

This entry was posted on December 30, 2019 at 4:20 am and is filed under Molecular Genetics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |