Skip to main content

Effects of smoking on blood 


Mr. Smart has tried to stop smoking, but has not been successful. He wants to know why it matters and the effects of tobacco on his heart and blood vessels. Let’s explain:
There are many chemicals in cigarettes and cigarette smoke that can damage your heart and blood vessels. Two chemicals, nicotine and carbon monoxide, interfere with your cardiovascular system’s ability to function properly. Exposure to nicotine and carbon monoxide change your heart and blood vessels in ways that increase your risk of heart and cardiovascular disease.
Nicotine causes your blood vessels to constrict or narrow, which limits the amount of blood that flows to your organs. Over time, the constant constriction results in blood vessels that are stiff and less elastic. Constricted blood vessels decrease the amount of oxygen and nutrients your cells receive. To meet the need for more oxygen, your heart rate may increase.
Carbon monoxide binds hemoglobin, the molecule in your blood that carries oxygen. When carbon monoxide is bound to hemoglobin, oxygen cannot bind. This decreases the amount of oxygen delivered to all of your cells. To provide your body with more oxygen and to pump more blood around your body, your heart may enlarge.
An increased heart rate, an enlarged heart and stiffer and less elastic blood vessels make it harder to pump blood and provide the body with the needed oxygen and nutrients. These changes in the structure and function of your blood vessels and heart increase your risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.
Exposure to second hand smoke can have these same effects on the heart and blood vessels. When you stop smoking the damage to your heart and blood vessels reverses and your risk of heart disease drops.
It is hard to stop smoking because your body is used to a certain level of nicotine. For this reason, some people find it easier to quit by reducing the number of cigarettes smoked each week. This slowly reduces the level of nicotine in your body and reduces the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. The use of other nicotine products such as nicotine gum, nicotine patch, nicotine inhaler or lozenges can be helpful to get your body used to less nicotine.
Other people find it easier to just stop smoking all at once. Still others find smoking cessation programs or support groups such as 1-800-QUIT-NOW helpful. Your doctor can also prescribe a non-nicotine medication to help you stop smoking.
How you stop smoking does not matter. Choose whatever method or combinations of methods work for you, and adopt a healthy lifestyle .

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DO NOT BE TOO QUICK TO JUDGE OTHERS  A couple had been married for several years without a child. For the purpose of companionship, they bought a Rottweiler puppy, named it miley and loved her like a child. The dog had access to all the rooms in the house. The puppy grew to become a large, beautiful dog and had on several occasions saved the couples from robbery. Miley was always faithful, loyal and defended its owners against many dangers. Seven years later, the couple was blessed with the long awaited son. They were very happy with their son and naturally decreased the attention they had given to the dog. Miley felt neglected and began to get jealous of the baby. One day the couple left the baby sleeping peacefully in his cradle and went to the terrace to prepare a roast. They were shocked as they were heading to the nursery and saw miley in the hallway with a bloody mouth, wagging its tail. The dog's owner thought the worst, they pulled out weapons and began to beat...
Post a Comment
Read more
Why do people pass out after donating blood when they have fasted?  I've worked in a blood bank. Not many people passed out while i worked there, it's quite rare, but for those who do, not eating/drinking enough (normal amounts) was the most common reason besides beein nervous.. If you haven't been drinking enough your blood volume falls. The fluid in your blood (plasma, mostly water) needs refill all the time, if not, it will "drain" (sweat, urine, etc). When the blood volume falls, the pressure falls. To prohibit this, the veins in your body constrict. That makes the volume of your veins to fall and the amount (volume) of blood has the same ratio to vein-volume, and the blood pressure is unchanged. If you're dehydrated the veins have constricted to try to keep the pressure up. If you add blood-donation to that, the volume falls even further. The veins can only constrict so much, and it might not be enough to keep the pressure at a normal level, you...
Post a Comment
Read more
TIPS FOR HEALTHY LIVING  By Seth Winsor 1 – Drink water – slowly start eliminating sugary drinks and replace with water . So many of us are dehydrated, but it’s so normal to us now, that we don’t even realize it. A few studies have shown that those attempting to lose weight, have much greater success if they start making water their drink of choice. Our bodies are composed primarily of water, so we need to make sure we stay hydrated! 2 – Exercise - Just do something you enjoy  – you don’t need to start training for a marathon, or be able to bench press your body weight. Start going for long walks – join a sports team – join a gym and participate in group exercise classes. Just find something you can enjoy and do several times a week, if not daily. Exercising daily for 30 minutes helps increase your chance at a longer life. We live a much to sedentary lifestyle, and it’s one of the reasons why we are seeing an increase cardiovascular related diseases. 3- Eat Fru...
Post a Comment
Read more