Tobacco is partially or completely made up of tobacco leaves that are used as raw material. Tobacco products can be consumed in the form of chewing, sucking and snuffing form. Snuffed and chewing tobacco is also known as smokeless tobacco. Generally, tobacco is responsible for containing all the highly addictive psychoactive elements, such as nicotine. According to a different literature review, it is stated that tobacco use is considered one of the major risk factors for the cause of chronic disorders, e.g. cancer, lung cancer and even consumption of it leads to cardiovascular diseases. Despite the severe consequences of tobacco use, it is still common all over the world. Although a large number of countries have restricted legislation for its control, like restriction for its advertisement and regulating authorities are there to control the buying and sale of tobacco and its products as well (“Tobacco”).
Tobacco use is thought to be one of the major leading causes of cancer and even death from cancer. Basically, people who consume tobacco or tobacco-related products on a regular base and people who sit in a smoking environment are more vulnerable to cancer. Cancer risk increases when tobacco is consumed because tobacco contains many chemicals that are responsible for DNA damage (“Tobacco”). Smoking is not only harmful to any specific body organ. It basically affects the overall body, and in other words, it diminishes the overall health of a person. Tobacco use is accountable for causing various types of cancer that are including lung cancer, oesophagus, mouth, bladder, kidney, pancreas, cervix, colon, rectum, liver, throat, stomach, etc. People who mostly consume chewing or snuffing tobacco have more risk of mouth oesophagus and pancreatic cancer (“Smoking And Cancer | Overviews Of Diseases/Conditions | Tips From Former Smokers | CDC”).
Tobacco use in any form is not safe. People who use any kind/brand of tobacco are advised to quit it. People who take the advice seriously despite their age have an improved lifestyle, and their life expectancy rate has increased compared to those who do not quit smoking. However, by quitting smoking after the cancer diagnostic stage, the risk of death due to smoking decreases. Quitting smoking after cancer diagnosis almost 30-40% risk of death rate reduced. Tobacco smoke generally contains a various form of chemicals which are thought to be dangerous for smokers and nonsmokers as well. Tobacco is harmful even when it is breathed in small amounts (“Study Confirms There Is No Safe Level Of Smoking”).
According to assorted reviews, almost all tobacco contains 7,000 chemicals. Out of these 250, they are considered injurious to health. Some of these are known as hydrogen cyanide, ammonia and carbon dioxide. Amongst the 250 chemicals of tobacco that are known as detrimental, at least 69 out of them are held to be responsible for cancer cause. These cancer-causing chemicals include aromatic amines, acetaldehyde, arsenic, benzene, cadmium, Ethylene oxides, Tobacco-specific nitrosamines, vinyl chloride and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (“Harms Of Cigarette Smoking And Health Benefits Of Quitting”).
Tobacco is injurious to health because it contains a high level of chemicals in it, e.g. cigarette contains the chemical. When people smoke a cigarette, these chemicals enter the bloodstream, and then these chemicals affect the whole body. That is why smoking causes many serious diseases, including 14 types of cancer as well as heart disease and different sorts of lung disorders. Almost out of 5 smokers, four are suffering from lung cancer. Lung cancer is one of the most common forms of all cancers, and it is also thought to be a widespread source of cancer death (“How Smoking Causes Cancer”).
In relation to smoke and cancer, it is stated that almost more than 16 million people have been suffering from common diseases due to smoking habits, and more than 20 million Americans have died just because of smoking, including 2.5 million who died only owing to exposure to cast-off smoke. However, 8.6 million people are having an illness because of smoking. Smokers have 30-40% more chances of becoming diabetic patients than non-smokers (tobacco).
Whereas 18 million males aged more than 20 are suffering from erectile dysfunction. Smoking is the main cause of erectile dysfunction (ED) because cigarette smoke alters the flow of blood that is needed for an erection. From the overall point of literature, most smokers die 13-14 years before then, such as people who do not smoke or are nonsmokers (“Facts About Smoking And Tobacco Use”).
Lung cancer is the major leading cause of death among men and women. Almost 90% of men and 80% of women deaths occur due to smoking. According to epidemiological studies, it is evident that lung cancer is caused by PAH and nitrosamines (Vineis et al. 99-106). polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and nitrosamines are the major carcinogens in tobacco smoke. Not only cigarettes but also any other forms of tobacco use, such as bidi, cigars, and pipe, can also cause cancer in numerous body organs (tobacco).
Worldwide use of tobacco has drastically increased, and it is also likely to be worse in future as well. In developed countries, approximately 30% of deaths are due to cancer, whereas the rate of death in developing countries is also increasing due to tobacco smoking. The rapid rise in tobacco consumption resulted in the rapid rise of lung cancer after a period of latency. Furthermore, smoking accounts for more than 85% of all lung cancer deaths. The risk of disease owed to smoking can be controlled by preventing smoking behaviour (“Tobacco: Which Is The True Cancer Risk?”). In short, decreased smoking prevalence decreased the risk of lung cancer in various countries such as the UK, Finland, and Australia; however, the present smoking pattern carries on, and in the 21st century, smoking will be accountable for more than 1 billion deaths.
References:
- “Tobacco.” World Health Organization. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- “Facts About Smoking And Tobacco Use | Be Tobacco Free.Gov.” Betobaccofree.hhs.gov. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- Vineis, P. et al. “Tobacco And Cancer: Recent Epidemiological Evidence.” JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute 96.2 (2004): 99-106. Web.
- “Tobacco.” National Cancer Institute. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- “Harms Of Cigarette Smoking And Health Benefits Of Quitting.” National Cancer Institute. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- “How Smoking Causes Cancer.” Cancer Research UK. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- tobacco?, What. “European Code Against Cancer – What Are The Cancer-Causing Substances In Tobacco?.” Cancer-code-europe.iarc.fr. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- “Smoking And Cancer | Overviews Of Diseases/Conditions | Tips From Former Smokers | CDC.” Cdc.gov. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- “Pot Vs. Tobacco: Which Is The True Cancer Risk?.” HuffPost Canada. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
- “Study Confirms There Is No Safe Level Of Smoking.” Cancer.org. N.p., 2018. Web. 16 Mar. 2018.
Cite This Work
To export a reference to this article please select a referencing stye below:
