Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable cancers. Not only cancer but tobacco use also has numerous detrimental health effects including heart disease, stroke and lung diseases. In fact, tobacco consumption can directly or indirectly cause damage to almost each and every symptom of the body.  Tobacco contains more than 100 harmful chemicals which can damage our body in many ways. Tobacco also contains nicotine, a highly addictive psychoactive drug which causes physical and psychological dependency. Lungs remain one of the most affected organs in the body but other organs are also not spared.

In a conversation with Jagran English, Dr Sandeep Nayar, Principal Director and HOD, Chest and Respiratory Diseases at BLK-Max Super Speciality Hospital listed ways tobacco impacts your body beyond the lungs.

Ways Tobacco Affects The Body

Heart

The heart and cardiovascular system also get affected by tobacco consumption. Blood clotting leading to stroke and heart attacks is more common among smokers or tobacco consumers as compared to non-smokers.

Diabetes

Smoking contributes to diabetes and increases the risk of complications from the disease including poor blood flow to legs and feet. Tobacco increases blood sugar levels, reduces insulin sensitivity and damages blood vessels, leading to complications like nephropathy, diabetic neuropathy and retinopathy.

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Infections

Smoking is associated with an increased risk of a variety of infections. Apart from respiratory infections which are very common among smokers as the lung epithelium lining gets destroyed by smoke, tobacco consumers are also more likely to suffer from skin & soft tissue infections and abscesses. Tobacco use, particularly smoking, significantly increases the risk of infections due to its detrimental effects on the immune system.

Erectile Dysfunction

Men may also suffer from Erectile dysfunction as tobacco causes the narrowing of blood vessels all over your body including those that supply blood to the penis.

Pregnancy Complications

Ectopic Pregnancy where a fertilised egg implants somewhere other than the uterus is also more commonly seen in smokers. The egg can’t survive and it puts the pregnant mother's life at serious risk. In addition smoking during pregnancy may also result in low birth weight or preterm birth.

Cancer

A number of cancers are attributed to tobacco consumption. Apart from Lung cancer, oral cancer especially among those who chew Gutka is a very common site. There is also an increased prevalence of cancers of the oesophagus, bladder, kidney, pancreas, stomach, cervix, colon and rectum. Tobacco can damage the DNA of blood cells, leading to aberrant cell development and potentially causing blood cancer.

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Eye Disease

Tobacco consumption can increase the risk of eye diseases like macular degeneration and potentially lead to blindness. Incidence of cataracts, Glaucoma and retinopathy is also seen more among tobacco consumers.

In addition, tobacco consumption can affect mental health, lower bone density can cause gum bleeding and tooth loss as well as bad breath may also result in wrinkles and premature skin ageing. Many of the effects can be reversed to some extent if one stops consuming tobacco.