More than an addiction.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), smoking leads to:
- Disease
- Disability
- Harm to nearly every organ of the body [10]
For every smoker who dies, there are roughly 30 people who live with a smoking-related illness.
More than 16 million Americans are living with an illness caused by smoking.
Smoking causes:
- Cancer
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- Lung diseases
- Diabetes
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
- Emphysema
- Chronic bronchitis
- Erectile dysfunction in males
- Lower estrogen in females
Smoking increases your risk for:
- Tuberculosis
- Eye diseases
- Problems with the immune system
- Rheumatoid arthritis
10. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2014 [accessed 2015 Apr 7].