Every single cigarette you smoke is harming your body.
The list of health problems caused by smoking is literally endless. The problem is, most of us think that smoking-related illness only happens to old people who’ve been smoking all their lives. Wrong – smoking starts to hurt your health from the very first puff, no matter what age you are.
The short-term effects of smoking go far beyond making you smell like a stinky ashtray and turning your teeth and fingers yellow.
- Among young people, the short-term health effects of smoking include damage to the respiratory (breathing) system, addiction to nicotine, and the risk of other drug use. Young people who smoke regularly are also more likely to be effected by long-term health consequences, because they often continue to smoke when they get older.
- Smoking hurts young people’s physical fitness in terms of both performance and endurance . E ven among young people who are trained in competitive running will be affected by smoking.
- Young people who smoke are also hampering their level of maximum lung function. The resting heart rates of young adult smokers are two to three beats per minute faster than those of non-smokers.
- Young smokers tend to have poorer health than non-smokers overall.
- The younger you are when you start smoking cigarettes, the more likely you are to become strongly addicted to nicotine.
- Teenagers who smoke are up to three times more likely than non-smokers to use alcohol, eight times more likely to use marijuana, and 22 times more likely to use cocaine. Smoking is also associated with other dangerous behaviours like fighting and engaging in unprotected sex.
I can stop any time I want.
Lots of young people who smoke every now and then think they won’t get addicted. But one in every two recreational smokers does get addicted – smoking is more addictive than alcohol, cocaine and even heroin.
Once you’re addicted, smoking can be a really difficult habit to break. And once you become a smoker, you’re putting yourself at risk of some serious health problems.
Smoking damages every part of your body – every year more than 19,000 Australians die prematurely from smoking-related diseases. One in two smokers will die early because of their habit.
Smoking is also a slow way to die, which can mean years of suffering for you and your family. Smokers are more at risk of blindness and cancer of the mouth, throat or lungs – up to 80 per cent of lung cancers are caused by smoking. Smoking also increases the risk of stroke and heart attack.
So before you put a cigarette in your mouth, think about the risks you’re taking with your life.
REMEMBER: EVERY CIGARETTE IS DOING YOU DAMAGE