Nicotine and its Effects on Weight :: Research Papers

Nicotine and its Effects on Weight Introduction Bad breath, yellow teeth, a chronic cough†¦these are some of the disgusting results of smoking cigarettes. Why do people continue to smoke when the effects are so harmful? The typical response from smokers to this question is that they smoke in order to relax and help relieve stress. Unfortunately, the quick fix happens to be an addictive narcotic. Smoking feeds the addiction, but it also feeds the body with about 40 cancer-causing chemicals as well as almost 4,000 other chemicals (http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/health/w8quit-smoke/index.htm). Besides the visible physical effects, smoking increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and other lung diseases (http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/health/w8quit-smoke/index.htm). With the first issuance of health warnings on cigarette packages being more than thirty years ago, logically the number of American smokers should have drastically decreased by now. However, polls show that 32 million Americans continue to smoke according to the American Dietetic Association website (http://www.eatright.org/erm/erm011200.html). Those who continue to smoke, despite the health risks, have decided to take chances with their long-term health rather than sacrifice the immediate benefits of a cigarette. Many current smokers say they are afraid to quit their destructive habit for fear of weight gain associated with the cessation of smoking. The added weight, however, poses a much lower health risk than the continuation of smoking. In order to reach equal health risks of smoking just one pack of cigarettes a day, someone would have to be about 125 pounds overweight (http://www.quitsmoking.com/books/nonag/weightgain.htm). Negative Effects on Women Furthermore, the negative effects smoking has on women are especially grim. A site devoted to women and smoking disclose that in the year 2000, women and young girl smokers will have a higher morbidity and mortality rate than that of men. Women smokers have a smaller lung capacity than men, which makes females more vulnerable to the chemicals in cigarette smoke. Also, women smokers have a four times greater chance of developing cervical cancer than non-smokers. Another frightening statistic mentioned in the article says that women who smoked 40 or more cigarettes a day showed a 74% higher risk of developing fatal breast cancer than non-smoking women. Additionally, a woman who smokes has a six-times greater risk of heart attack than men who smoke.