Research has been conducted throughout the years that revealed how dangerous smoking cigarettes can be. It can weaken your immune system which can lead to various health issues. Some of the health issues can lead to death and while death doesn’t always occur immediately, it can and will decrease the quality of life you experience. In addition, smoking can affect various organs in the body such as: lungs, heart, brain, skin, and in addition the mouth. We don’t have to tell you this, but sometimes, being “reminded” of the dangers, will highlight the advantages of living a smoke free life.
Bodily Functions Damaged and Restored
Lungs
The lungs are the organs in your body that help you to breathe. A smoker can do a lot of harm to their lungs by smoking. Smoking can cause tar to build up on the lungs, destroy the cilia; it can cause a smoker to develop lung cancer, pneumonia, emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
Did you know that within 12 weeks after a person stops smoking, their lungs can start recovering from the damage that was done. The lungs can begin to clean themselves and the overall function of the lungs can begin to improve. Within 10 years to 20 years later, you have dramatically decreased the possibility of getting cancer.
Remember when you could run? Yes, those we’re the days, when going up a flight of stairs didn’t take your breath away. Removing tobacco smoke from your daily life can be the answer to slowly introducing a bit of exercise. Not everyone has time for the gym, but if you could jog to the corner store, or go for a swim once a week, smoking might discourage you from even starting.
Heart
Smoking cigarettes can cause heart disease and blood thickness. Heart disease can become deadly and often incapacitating, and that’s not a surprise, since it’s the motor to our blood flow and oxygen. The heart is the organ that is most commonly affected by a person smoking, and that is very important to know and remember.
Did you know that your risk of getting heart disease can be reduced by 50%? How? About 12 months after you quit smoking your risk of heart disease can be significantly decreased and the percentage keeps rising with time.
Your heart is vital to being able to move and do what you want to do. If you plan on enjoying that retirement, an early retirement from smoking is highly suggested. Get a better outlook now, not tomorrow.
Brain
Strokes can occur in the brain. When a person smokes their brain can become negatively affected motor skills and partially paralyze or go to the point completely incapacitating the individual into a vegetative state.
Did you know that when a person stops smoking, within 5 years afterward, their risk of having a stroke can be reduced significantly? This has been common in my family among my older uncles whom had smoked their whole lives. I did not want to go through that, so you know what I did, I switched to smokeless e-cigarettes!
Skin
In addition to the major bodily organs being affected, the biggest organ on your body can be affected. The biggest organ on your body is your skin. Your skin can become dehydrated and develop premature wrinkles. You will look older, sooner.
You can quickly spot the difference as little as in 30 days after you stop smoking. Your skin will glow and look healthy, those big droopy eye bags will be gone, and your overall skin tone will return to normal.
Mouth
Smoking can harm your mouth, gums and teeth. It can make you susceptible to developing diseases in the mouth and weaken your teeth. Gum disease and throat cancer is very undesirable and requires tooth pulling for treatment.
Days after you stop smoking, you will slowly get your sense of taste back, because little did you maybe know, if you smoke, you don’t taste nearly as much as a non-smoker. Chefs would go as far as saying that you have no palette whatsoever if you smoke.
Summary
The human body is capable of regenerating. Within 8 hours after your last cigarette your body can start on the road to regeneration. It will begin to flush the carbon monoxide from the bloodstream. In addition, your sense of taste and smell may improve, after not smoking for one week.
If you find it difficult to quit smoking you may want to switch to an alternative solution like electronic cigarettes. Also keep in mind, if you manage to stop smoking or 3 days, that is usually enough to trigger the brain’s addiction to shut off, and you will only be left with the psychological and regular habit challenges, and that is where e-cigs come in as the most effective alternative I have tried to date!