Tobacco Addiction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Tobacco Addiction - Essay Example Nicotine is what which causes tobacco addiction; it is justified indeed as tobacco comes from a plant called Nicotiana. Hydrogen cyanide is also present in tobacco which is more commonly known as rat poison. Even the most forgotten corners of the world know for a fact that anything that contains tobacco is dangerous for health. It is rational that they know the risk. Still, one billion people use tobacco; that's more or less 16% of the world population!Smoking seems to help a lot of people overcome many problems; from wafting their troubles away to even thinking of it as some sort of a companion. A person starts smoking for a lot of reasons but once they start it seems harder and harder to quit. They become a drug addict: they crave for the feelings which arise in them whenever they smoke. Some people don't want to stop smoking others just can't tolerate the smell of the smoke. Smoking is cool for teens, a way of life for adults and a part of personality for the aged. People smoke so that they can concentrate on something, part with stress or just simply pass the time. People who smoke generally tend to feel relaxed which is not true as smoking immediately increases the heart rate, flow of blood from the heart and blood pressure. It does, however, calm the senses and numbs the fingers of feet and hands. It weakens appetite and feelings of hunger but it hasn't been proven that obese people would benefit from smoking. All this happens because the brain releases a lot of chemicals which eventually have the smoker in a sate of pure bliss. The nicotine receptor gene of smokers causes them to be eight times more prone to start smoking than non-smokers. Although there are five ways of smoking: cigarette, hookah, pipe, cigar and roll-your-owns; only cigarette is the most common. Cigarettes are known to have pleasing short-term effects but hazardous long-term ones. Nicotine, tar and carbon monoxide are the substances which make up the 'tobacco smoke.' Tobacco smoke is tasted or more commonly, inhaled. Nicotine takes exactly seven seconds to make up its way to the brain and trigger feelings in pleasing combinations of reduced anxiety, heightened pleasure, and a state of alert. It can be used as an anesthetic or a pick-me-up by controlling the amount of nicotine absorbed in the bloodstream. Extended, intense inhalations, additional puffs per cigarette, or smoking down to the end can increase the nicotine being absorbed to a level higher than the printed one. A large amount of diseases are caused by smoking. Over forty chemicals in the tobacco smoke can cause cancers of larynx, throat, tongue, lungs, bladder, pharynx, oesophagus, lips, colorectal, colon, nasal sinuses, nasal cavities, liver and stomach. It also plays a part in developing cancer of the cervix, pancreas, and kidneys. It causes cardiovascular disease, lung diseases such as chronic bronchitis, emphysema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). It affects all parts of the body from the hair to the immune system. Smoking causes osteoporosis, cataract, leukemia, infertility, Buerger's disease, peptic ulcer, thyroid diseases, erectile dysfunction, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), leukoplakia, skin disorders, peripheral vascular disease (PVD), stroke and insomnia. Passive smokers are also susceptible to diseases related to smoking. Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) causes cardiovascular disease and lung cancer in non-smokers. Childhood exposed to ETS tend to have severe asthma. ETS exposure of toddlers also causes an increased risk of bronchitis, pneumonia and ear infections in them. Hence, smokers benefit many people by quitting smoking and they should be aware that anyone can quit smoking; it's just a matter of time