Nicotine is the addictive drug in tobacco smoke that causes people who smoke to continue to smoke.
Along with nicotine, people who smoke inhale about 7,000 other chemicals in cigarette smoke.
Many of these chemicals come from burning tobacco leaf. Some of these compounds are chemically active and trigger profound and damaging changes in the body.
Tobacco smoke contains over 70 known cancer-causing chemicals. Smoking harms nearly every organ in the body, causing many diseases and reducing health in general.
Diseases caused by long- term smoking:
A person who smokes throughout their life is at high risk of developing a range of potentially lethal diseases, including:
- cancer of the lung, mouth, nose, larynx, tongue, nasal sinus, oesophagus, throat, pancreas, bone marrow (myeloid leukaemia), kidney, cervix, ovary, ureter, liver, bladder, bowel and stomach.
- lung diseases such as chronic bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which includes obstructive bronchiolitis and emphysema
- heart disease and stroke
- ulcers of the digestive system
- osteoporosis and hip fracture
- poor blood circulation in feet and hands, which can lead to pain and, in severe cases, gangrene and amputation
- type 2 diabetes
- rheumatoid arthritis.
