Tobacco is the biggest enemy of public health today. The effects of tobacco use,as we all know , are destructive and widespread. Not many know that tobacco is one of the primary causes of cancerand heart attacks. Many youngsters, in both cities and rural areas , are getting addicted to tobacco use in various forms, which in the long run, can have an adverse effect on health and life of the population. According to a recent study conducted by , almost 30% of Indian population, in the age group of 15 years and above, use some form of tobacco. While the early form of tobacco. While the early forms of tobacco include chewing tobacco leaves, ghutka and beedis, cigarettes, cigars, chillum and hookahs are equally common, especially in the urban areas.
Tobacco smoke contains approximately 4,000 chemicals in cigarettes, hundreds of which are toxic like formaldehyde, ammonia and cadmium. These constituents of cigarettes have a detrimental effect on everything – from body’s immunity to the functioning of the organs.
Smoking not only puts the active smoker in the danger zone of diseases but envelops the innocent passive smokers too into its fold. It has been scientifically proven that smoking causes cancer and a host of other diseases like emphysema, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, CAD, buccal cancer and lung cancer and various their diseases. But somehow even this formidable list does not act as a deterrent for addicted smokers to quit smoking.
Tobacco is agricultural product of the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana commonly called as tobacco plant. It contains an addictive drug nicotine which is a stimulant and sedative which is present in all parts of the plant except the seeds. Once the tobacco has been grown, harvested and cured and processed, it is used to produce a number of different products. These are most often consumable, also used to create pesticides. Tobacco products are generally be divided into two types: smoked tobacco and smokeless tobacco. Smokeless tobacco is a tobacco product that is used by means other than smoking. These include chewing, sniffing, placing the product between teeth and gum or applicaton to the skin. Tobacco smoke contains approximately 4000 chemicals in cigarettes, hundreds of which are toxic like formaldehyde, ammonia and cadmium. These constituents of cigarettes have a detrimental effect on everything – from body’s immunity to the functioning of the organs.
Research reveals that –
- Smoking tobacco triples your risk of a heart attack.
- Smoking just eight cigarettes a day doubles your risk for heart attack.
If you are smoker and trying to quit, there are a number of ways that can help you kick that habit. Nicotine gum, nicotine patches, lozenges and inhalers are designed to help smokers quit. Nicotine replacement therapy works by releasing a small amount of nicotine into blood stream , but without the dangerous effects of inhaling tobacco smoke. This provides quick relief with withdrawal symptoms and cravings that you get when you stop smoking and allows you to get on with breaking the psychological habit of smoking.