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According World Health Organisation tobacco kills more than 7 million people every year,  out of which 6 million are the result of direct tobacco use while around one million death are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke. Even while the governments try hard to make people quit the killing habit of tobacco usage, this South American deadly discovery continues to fill cancer wards and block millions of smooth flowing heart arteries. Tobacco contributes ten million deaths every year in India, that too even after the strict implementation of public smoking ban and complete ban on chewing tobacco products in many States.

Tobacco products contains around 5000 toxic substances including the most  dangerous

Nicotine, Carbon Monoxide and Tar. Nicotine is  a poisonous substance leads to addiction  that  influences and reinforces all tobacco-use behavior. Nicotine binds to the receptors in the brain where it influences the cerebral metabolism. It is then distributed throughout the body, mostly to skeletal muscles. Development of tolerance to its own actions is similar to that produced by other addictive drugs.

Carbon mono-oxide reduces the amount of oxygen blood can carry and causes shortness of breath. Tar is a sticky residue which contains Benzopyrene, one of the deadliest cancer causing agents known. Other compounds are carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, ammonia, volatile nitrosamines, hydrogen cyanide, volatile sulfur containing compounds, volatile hydrocarbons, alcohols, aldehydes and ketones. Most of these cause cancers of various organs of the body.

The tobacco leaves used to make cigarettes and cigars contain radioactive materials,  the amount depends on the soil the plants were grown in and fertilizers used. But this means that the smoke contains small amounts of radioactive material, too, which smokers take into their lungs as they inhale. These radioactive particles build up in the lungs, and over time can mean a big dose of radiation. This may be another key factor in smokers getting lung cancer. Lung diseases caused by smoking include COPD, which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Cigarette smoking causes most cases of lung cancer. If you have asthma, tobacco smoke can trigger an attack or make an attack worse. Smokers are 12 to 13 times more likely to die from COPD than nonsmokers.

Smokeless dangers

Use of smokeless tobacco is equally harmful as the other. Chewing tobacco products increases the risk of oral cancers – cancer of the mouth, throat, cheek, gums, lips or tongue. There’s also an increased risk of cancers of the pancreas and esophagus, the long tube that runs from your throat to your stomach. It also increases the risk of  developing small white patches called leukoplakia inside your mouth. These mouth lesions  could one day become cancerous.

Some forms of smokeless tobacco increase your heart rate and blood pressure. Evidence suggests that long-term use of smokeless tobacco increases your risk of dying of heart disease and stroke.

The sugar and irritants in smokeless tobacco products can cause cavities, abrasion of teeth, teeth staining, bad breath, gum disease, receding gums, bone loss around roots and tooth loss

Quit it for a quiet life

Only you can decide you want to quit using tobacco. Others can compel you to quit, but the  commitment must come from you. Deciding that you are now ready to quit smoking is half the battle. Knowing where to start on your path to becoming tobacco-free can help you to take the leap. We have put together some effective ways for you to stop smoking today.