No Tobacco Day

Highlighting the heart health risks associated with smoking

After scrutinizing the deaths occur every hour due to tobacco intake around the globe, the member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) created World No Tobacco Day in 1987. Every year May 31, is observed as a day to encourage people to abstain from all forms of tobacco. Anticipating to improve heart health WHO has set a theme for this year as “Tobacco breaks hearts”. Tobacco consumption may cause many complications like stroke and cancer but the number of heart patients is increasing at pace. Hence authorities have converged their focus to heart health.

Life’s vibrant hues are way too beautiful and precious to be distorted by the smoke of cigarettes.

The global tobacco epidemic kills more than 7 million people each year, of which close to 900 000 are non-smokers dying from breathing second-hand smoke. Nearly 80% of the more than 1 billion smokers worldwide live in low- and middle-income countries, where the burden of tobacco-related illness and death is heaviest. These were the statistics given by WHO (World Health Organization).

This piece of writing will introduce you to tobacco consumption and possible heart health risks. Smokers are at a twofold increase in the risk to have a heart attack compared with non-smokers. Whereas, your smoking is injurious, not mere to you but passive smokers are at higher risk too.

Cardiovascular Diseases

Several types of heart conditions can lead to heart disease. Most common type of heart disease is narrowing of the blood carrying vessels to the heart. This further causes chest pain, heart attack (when blood flows to the heart become blocked), heart failure (when the heart cannot pump enough blood and oxygen to support other organs) and Arrhythmia (when the heart beats irregularly).

In the same vein, a stroke happens when the blood supply to the brain is impeded or when the blood vessels in the brain bursts, causing brain tissues die. It may lead to complications like paralysis, muscle weakness, memory loss, speech problem or sometimes death.

How is smoking responsible?

So far as one of every three deaths from CVD caused by smoking and so it is accepted unanimously that smoking causes CVD. Let us see how-

  • Smoking raise triglycerides (a type of fat in your blood)
  • It makes blood sticky and more likely to clot, which can block blood flow to the heart and brain.
  • Causes an instant and long-term rise in blood pressure.
  • Damage cells that line the blood vessels
  • Increase the buildup of plaque (fat, cholesterol, calcium, and other substances) in blood vessels
  • Cause thickening and narrowing of blood vessels
  • A rise in heart rate
  • Reduce blood flow rate

Causes of CVD and smoking impacts are analogous. Similarly, the secondhand smoke or passive smoking impacts and cause CVD to non-smokers too. Though you are yourself not smoking but breathing in that same smoke smoker has breathed out lead you to cardiovascular diseases. Smoking has also been linked with depression and stress.

Passive smoking is more dangerous to children, pregnant women, and infants. Initially passive smoke may get symptoms such as irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, coughing, excessive phlegm, chest pain, ear infections and most common is asthma.

Smoking is like committing suicide…Quit smoking and give life a chance !!

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