The list of complications that have been mentioned in various sources for Smoking includes:
See also the symptoms of Smoking and Smoking: Introduction.
Complications and sequelae of Smoking from the Diseases Database include:
See also the symptoms of Smoking and Smoking: Introduction.
Quitting smoking has major and immediate health benefits for smokers of all ages. After 1 year off cigarettes, the excess risk of heart disease caused by smoking is reduced by about half. After 10 years, the risk of lung cancer for former smokers drops to is less than one-half that of a continuing smoker. In five to 15 years, the risk of stroke for former smokers returns to the level of those who never smoked. (Source: excerpt from Facts About Smoking Among U_S_ Adults: CDC-OC)
Cigarette smoking causes a variety of life-threatening diseases, including lung cancer, emphysema, and heart disease. (Source: excerpt from Smoking and Your Digestive System: NIDDK)
Smoking has been shown to have harmful effects on all parts of the digestive system, contributing to such common disorders as heartburn and peptic ulcers. It also increases the risk of Crohn's disease and possibly gallstones. Smoking seems to affect the liver, too, by changing the way it handles drugs and alcohol. In fact, there seems to be enough evidence to stop smoking solely on the basis of digestive distress. (Source: excerpt from Smoking and Your Digestive System: NIDDK)
Smoking by women in the United States causes one and a half times as many deaths from heart disease as from lung cancer. If you smoke, you are two to six times more likely to suffer a heart attack than a nonsmoking woman, and the risk increases with the number of cigarettes you smoke each day. Smoking also boosts the risk of stroke.
Cardiovascular diseases are not the only health risks connected to smoking. Women who smoke are much more likely to develop lung cancer than nonsmoking women. Cigarette smoking is also linked with cancers of the mouth, larynx, esophagus, urinary tract, kidney, pancreas, and cervix. Smokers also are more likely to develop other kinds of lung problems, including bronchitis and emphysema. (Source: excerpt from NHLBI Heart Disease & Women Are You At Risk: NHLBI)
In the short term, smoking involves nicotine addiction, respiratory problems, coronary artery disease, dental problems, nervousness and depression, and a tendency toward health-damaging behavior. Most obvious are the immediate changes in quality of life: bad breath, wrinkled skin, and stained fingernails.
Smoking is also infamous for its long-term effects on health. Women who smoke have at least a 10 times greater likelihood of developing lung cancer than nonsmoking women; it even surpassed breast cancer as a cause of cancer deaths among American women. Tobacco use is a major risk factor for other cancers such as cervical and esophageal/throat cancers. A woman who smokes is two to six times more likely to suffer a heart attack than a nonsmoking women, and the risk increases with the number of cigarettes smoked each day and for young women who both smoke and use oral contraceptives. Smoking also boosts the risk of stroke and greatly increases the chances for infertility, complications during pregnancy, and an earlier onset of menopause and the development of osteoporosis. Tobacco use by pregnant women has been linked with increased risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and mental retardation; secondhand smoke worsens the health of children with asthma. (Source: excerpt from Smoking: NWHIC)
Not everyone gains weight when they quit smoking. Most people who do gain weight gain about 5 to10 pounds when they stop smoking. You are more likely to gain weight if you have smoked for 10 to 20 years or smoked one or more packs of cigarettes a day. It helps to remember that you can lose this weight with healthy eating and exercise. And, the health effects of smoking are far worse than being a few pounds overweight. If you smoke, talk with your health care provider about quitting. (Source: excerpt from Weight Loss: NWHIC)
Cigarette smoke damages your lungs and airways. Air passages swell and, over time, become filled with mucus. This can cause a cough that won't go away. Sometimes this leads to a lung disease called chronic bronchitis. If you keep smoking, normal breathing may become harder and harder as emphysema develops. In emphysema, airways become blocked as the tissue of your lungs undergoes changes that make getting enough oxygen difficult. Smoking can shorten your life. It brings an early death to more than 400,000 people in the United States each year. Lifelong smokers have a 1 in 2 chance of dying from a smoking-related disease. Smoking doesn't just cut a few months off the end of your life. It reduces the life of the average smoker by 12 years. Smoking makes millions of Americans sick by causing: (Source: excerpt from Smoking It's Never Too Late to Stop - Age Page - Health Information: NIA)
Smoking makes millions of Americans sick by causing:
The following medical news items are relevant to complications of Smoking:
The following are statistics from various sources about the complications of Smoking:
You may also want to research other symptoms in our Symptoms Center.
Complications of Smoking are secondary conditions, symptoms, or other disorders that are caused by Smoking. In many cases the distinction between symptoms of Smoking and complications of Smoking is unclear or arbitrary.
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