Leave The Pack Behind @ McMaster University

The
Effects of “Light”
Smoking

Our
team is often asked by students
what the effects of “light”
smoking are. Krista Adlington
of Mac’s Peer Support team researched
the following points:

–
“Although the effects of
smoking are well known, smokers
often assume that smoking just
a few cigarettes or smoking
without inhaling is not hazardous.
The study emphasizes that even
very limited tobacco consumption
has detrimental health effects.”
– based on a review of the Copenhagen
City Heart Study

–
“Smoking any cigarettes
at all cause an increased tolerance
to nicotine. In order to acheive
the same effect from the drug
that smokers once use to acheive
they begin to smoke more and
more, OR they puff more on each
cigarette, inhale more deeply,
and hold smoke in their lungs
for a longer period of time.”

–
“Smoking between three
and five cigarettes each day
puts women at twice the risk
of having a heart attack or
dying from other causes than
nonsmokers. For men, smoking
between six and nine cigarettes
doubles their risk of heart
attack.” – the above two
points are from BUPA’s medical
team

–
“Cigarette smokers have
a lower level of lung function
than those persons who have
never smoked.”

–
“Smoking reduces the rate
of lung growth.”

–
“Smoking hurts young people’s
physical fitness in terms of
both performance and endurance–even
among young people trained in
competitive running.”

–
“On average, someone who
smokes a pack or more of cigarettes
each day lives 7 years less
than someone who never smoked.”

–
“The resting heart rates
of young adult smokers are two
to three beats per minute faster
than nonsmokers.”

–
“Teenage smokers suffer
from shortness of breath almost
three times as often as teens
who don’t smoke, and produce
phlegm more than twice as often
as teens who don’t smoke.”

(the
last 6 points are from the Centre
for Chronic Disease Prevention)