If you are indulging in smoking or have a fascination to try it; then just go through this article. I hope you quit smoking after reading through.
We all know how injurious smoking is for our health. But there are people who are ‘addicts’, too many to count actually. It’s needless to say that smoking kills, since it contains nicotine and carbon monoxide which are the most harmful chemicals that deteriorate our health. But the irony lies in the fact that these are the same chemicals responsible for the hallucinations and the famous ‘addiction’. Pleasure they might give, but just temporarily. Very often people smoke because of tension, depression, to narrowly escape from the responsibilities of life, or just for the fun of it.
It is quite obvious that smoking affects the entire body; the heart and brain in particular and in a BAD way. The effects of smoking on the heart are unavoidable. It is a common cause of all the cardiovascular heart diseases, which include atherosclerosis, coronary heart diseases, strokes, peripheral vascular disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, and aorta aneurysm. We all know that the heart is the primary organ for supply of blood and oxygen to the entire body. Carbon monoxide competes with oxygen to combine with hemoglobin and gets absorbed in blood faster than the latter; oxygen deficiency makes the heart starve to death. The heart is continuously working very hard to cope up with the oxygen and blood supply which gets hampered due to cigar smoke. Smoking is responsible for increased fibrinogen levels, a blood clotting protein as well the platelet count which causes the blood to stick around the blood vessels.
Effects of Smoking on Heart
Atherosclerosis
This condition is related to the arteries characterized by deposition of plaques (fatty materials) and cholesterol in them and thus thickening them. Plaques are the result of the toxins released from nicotine. The most destructive thing that occurs because of fat deposition is the starvation of the heart for oxygen and blood supply due to blocked arteries. High cholesterol levels are bad as well.
Strokes (Cerebral Thrombosis)
This condition is highly fatal since it affects the brain, the most important part of our body. The brain is left deprived of oxygen and blood or the arteries burst off, leading to death. Subarachnoid, a form of hemorrhage, can prevail as well especially in women indulging into contraceptives.
Peripheral Vascular Disease
This condition is characterized by lesser blood supply to the hands and legs, the root cause being heavy deposition of fats and plaques and eventual blockage. This might lead to gangrene and amputation in worst cases.
Thromboangiitis Obliterans (Buerger’s Disease)
Heavy smokers are at a higher risk to suffer from this condition characterized by inflammation of the arteries, leading to blockage.
Abdominal Aorta Aneurysm
This condition is characterized by ballooning of the aorta. The aorta is the largest artery which transports oxygenated blood to the whole body.
Coronary Heart Diseases
Heart Attacks
We always hear that heart attacks are a common cause of death but what is the reason for them to occur? Smoking is one of the many reasons; the excessive deposition of plaques blocks the coronary artery and the heartbeat stops. As I mentioned before, our heart requires oxygen and blood supply continuously and when the supply cuts off, heart stops working resulting in death.
Angina
This occurs when the blood supply to the heart is interrupted; the reason again being heavy deposition of plaques in arteries or say due to exertion as well. It is not fatal but the symptoms include chest pain and tightness.
As mentioned above, smoking not only hampers the heart function but also affects the heart rate. With the help of wide number of experiments carried out and examining the heart rates of smokers and non-smokers, it has been observed that the heart rate of smokers is significantly high as well the blood pressure (systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, arterial blood pressure). Male smokers show higher values than females. Smokers with hypertension background are at greater risks of increased heart rate which is quite obvious.
Quit Smoking
So if you are a ‘chain smoker’, and are wondering how to quit smoking then, I would say it’s not that difficult, if you have confidence in yourself and the willpower. Smoking is not a solution to all the problems. Accepting the realities of life and facing them can work much better as compared to smoking. People who think that smoking is a fashion statement are wrong in every damn sense.
I don’t need to mention any further, that cigar smoke kills. Smoking effects on heart are very significant and hazardous. So, it’s any day better to quit smoking if you want to live a healthy life. I hope the smokers have read and understood. Try quit smoking. All the best!
