Neighbor News
Do You Know Anyone Who Still Smokes?
Cigarettes contain over 7,000 chemicals, some of which can cause cancer, including formaldehyde, benzene, polonium 210 and vinyl chloride.
Cigarette smoking is an expensive habit in more ways than one:
1. The average cost for a pack of cigarettes in New Jersey for 2016 is $8.55.
2. According to a report from 2013, which appeared in "USA Today", a smoker's life expectancy is at least 10 years less than a non-smoker.
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3. Various estimates put the average healthcare costs of a smoker, about 40% higher than a non-smoker.
4. A 2013 study showed that smokers each cost their employers about $6,000.00/year in lost productivity, as reported by NBC News.
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5. A smoker will also have a much greater chance to go out on disability, as compared to a non-smoker.
The According to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 17.8% of adults smoke today, as compared to about 50% in the 1960s. But that still causes about 1,300 deaths per day.
What Are the Side Effects of Smoking Cigarettes?
Short-Term Effects:
1. Yellow or brown teeth stains, as well as tooth and gum damage
2. Premature wrinkles and aging
3. A chronic cough
4. Shortness of breath and impaired lung function
5. A weakened immune system
Long-Term Effects:
1. Cardiovascular health problems, including high blood pressure, blood clots, cardiac arrhythmias, atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), Peripheral Arterial Disease (P.A.D.), heart failure, heart attack and stroke
2. Stomach ulcers
3. Respiratory problems, including asthma, Chronic Obstructive pulmonary Disease (C.O.P.D.),which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
4. Female complications, including reduced fertility, a higher risk of premature delivery, miscarriage, stillbirth, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), ectopic pregnancy and oro-facial clefts for the newborns.
5. Men who smoke may encounter erectile dysfunction, poor sperm quality and other sperm defects.
6. Higher risk of cancers, mostly lung cancer, but other cancers include; bladder cancer, acute myeloid leukemia, cervical cancer, colorectal cancer, esophageal cancer, kidney cancer, cancer of the ureter, laryngeal cancer, liver cancer, stomach cancer, pancreatic cancer and tracheal cancer.
Tips on How to Quit Smoking:
To quit smoking is a very difficult thing to accomplish, but it can be done and it has been done by millions of people. The Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), has a great free source with information to quit smoking. You can also call 1-800-QUIT-NOW.