Why It's Important to Quit
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Why It's Important for Women to Quit There are so many reasons why women should and would want to quit smoking. Most of them relate to the quality of a woman. s life and health, and for those in their reproductive years, the health of their unborn babies as well. All races of women suffer the same short-term and long-term health consequences from smoking.
Short-Term Health Effects
In the short-term, smoking involves nicotine addiction, respiratory problems, coronary artery disease, dental problems, nervousness and depression, and a tendency toward health-damaging behavior. Obvious negative effects on appearance include bad breath, wrinkled skin, and stained fingernails.Long Term Health Effects
The long-term effects on health are worse. Coronary heart disease is the #1 killer of women in the U.S., and cigarette smoking doubles the risk. Smoking also increases the risk of developing oral cavity diseases and lung disease. It can contribute to bone loss and the development of osteoporosis. Women who smoke also are at an increased risk for developing many various cancers, including cervical cancer, lung cancer, skin cancer, and cancers of the mouth, larynx, pharynx, esophagus, pancreas, kidney, and bladder. Besides increasing a woman. s risk for developing cancer in the first place, smoking in women who have been treated for cervical cancer, doubles complications after the treatment, including gastrointestinal complications like bleeding in the bowel, rectum, and bladder. Also, smoking in women who have been treated for breast cancer seems to contribute to differences in survival rates compared to women with breast cancer who had never smoked or who were ex-smokers.In adolescents, smoking is linked to depression, contradictory to the myth that smoking makes depressed people feel better. Heavy smoking in this group also is linked to anxiety disorders and panic attacks during early adulthood.
Smoking may impair fertility in both women and men, and may cause early onset of menopause. Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm delivery, and low birth weight. The smoke inhaled by a pregnant woman goes directly to her baby. s lungs. It also prevents as much as 25 % of oxygen from reaching the placenta. One study also has found that women who smoke during pregnancy also put their unborn children at risk for criminal behavior in their future.
A breastfeeding mother who smokes may be exposing her baby to harmful tobacco chemicals even if she doesn. t smoke around the baby, since the chemicals are transmitted to the baby in breast milk. Infants of adults who smoke seem more susceptible to diseases, such as asthma, and suffer an increased rate of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Children and adults who are regularly exposed to second-hand smoke have increased rates of respiratory infections, such as pneumonia, bronchitis, and fluid in the middle ear.
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