SMOKING AND ITS EFFECTS TO MAN

What is smoking?

 Smoking is a practice in which a substance is burned and the smoke is tasted or inhaled. Tobacco is the most smoked substance.

The most common method of smoking today is through cigarettes. The cigarettes are industrially manufactured or hand-rolled from loose tobacco and rolling paper.

Other implements used for smoking include pipes, cigars, bidis, hookahs, vaporizers, and bongs.

It has been suggested that smoking-related diseases kill one half of all long term smokers but these diseases may also be contracted by non-smokers.

A 2007 report states that, each year, about 4.9 million people worldwide die as a result of smoking (Wikipedia)

 Smoking is one of the most common forms of recreational drug use. Tobacco smoking is today by far the most popular form of smoking and is practiced by over one billion people in the majority of all human societies. Less common drugs for smoking include cannabis and opium. Some of the substances are classified as hard narcotics, like heroin, but the use of these is very limited as they are often not commercially available.

Tobacco smoking is the practice of burning tobacco and inhaling the smoke; many smokers begin during adolescence or early adulthood. During the early stages, a combination of perceived pleasure acting as positive reinforcement and desire to respond to social peer pressure may offset the unpleasant symptoms of initial use, which typically include nausea and interrupted sleep patterns. After an individual has smoked for some years, the avoidance of withdrawal symptoms and negative reinforcement become the key motivations to continue.

Why do people smoke?

Many people do smoke for different reasons; cigarettes are advertised. Smoking by parents, siblings and friends also encourages many to smoke. Others use it for recreation. It can also be done as a part of rituals, to induce trances and spiritual enlightenment. Some think it looks cool. Others start because their family members or friends smoke.

Diseases caused by smoking:

Almost everyone knows that smoking causes cancer, breathing problems, emphysema, heart attacks, and stroke. Secondhand smoke causes asthma and breathing problems. It also shortens your life by 10 years or more. And that the habit can cost a smoker thousands of dollars a year.

How come people are still lighting up to smoke? 

People still light to smoke because it is addictive. Once You Start, It's Hard to Stop. Smoking is a hard habit to break because tobacco contains nicotine, which is highly addictive.  Like heroin or other addictive drugs, the body and mind quickly become so used to the nicotine in cigarettes that a person needs to have it just to feel normal. Most adults who started smoking in their teens never expected to become addicted. That's why people say it's just so much easier to not start smoking at all. Statistics show that about 9 out of 10 tobacco users start before they're 18 years old.

Restriction on smoking:

Today we're more aware about how bad smoking is for our health. Smoking is restricted or banned in almost all public places and cigarette companies are no longer allowed to advertise on TV, radio, and in many magazines.

How can I quit smoking?

Get help quitting smoking from support groups, nicotine replacement therapy, and other medications. 

Save your lives from the dangers of smoking!