Smoking - Body Damage
Healthy Lungs - Your lungs are filled with delicate air sacs, tiny, soft structures surrounded by very small blood vessels. In these air sacs, carbon dioxide gases from the body are exchanged for fresh air from the outside. This is a clean lung. The black specks are from having breathed in smoggy air.
Lung with emphysema - Emphysema damages the delicate air sacs in your lungs. They become large and hard, and lose their ability to exchange air. With damaged air sacs, you cannot get enough air to breathe, and always feel that you cannot catch your breath. Emphysema is a very serious disease. It take years to develop, but its damage cannot be undone. The disease can be caused by any substance in the lungs which causes irritation and swelling. Cigarette smoke is the most common cause of this disease.
Lung Cancer - Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer death in both men and women. Smoking is the most common cause of this kind of cancer. Unfortunately, lung cancer is hard to cure. In most cases, lung cancer is not found until it has spread to other parts of the body, like the brain, liver or bones. By quitting smoking, you can reduce your chance of getting this kind of cancer.
Arteriosclerosis or hardening of the Arteries -Arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, is a major cause of heart attack and stroke. A smoking habit speeds up the pocess of hardening of the arteries. Quitting smoking and adopting a lowfat diet can improve your health. The image on the left is of a healthy artery. This is the smooth inside surface of a normal blood vessel.
Hardened Artery - This is the rough inside surface of a diseased artery. In comparison to the healthy artery in the image above, it is clear that blood flow through a thickened vessel would be seriously impeded.
Peripheral Vascular Disease - Peripheral vascular disease (PVD) can have serious consequences. PVD is a common circulation problem in which the arteries that carry blood to the legs or arms become narrowed or clogged. Many people also refere to the condition as “hardening of the arteries”. Smokers are at increased risk of developing PVD.
Peripheral Vascular Disease continued - As PVD develops, circulation to the extremities of the body, such as the arms and legs, is gradually choked off by blocked arteries leading to gangrene. This leaves doctors with little option other than amputation to avoid blood poisoning.
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