Smoking and physical health
Tobacco smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, including over 70 chemicals known to cause cancer (carcinogens). When you breathe in cigarette smoke, these chemicals enter your lungs and spread through your body. Most smokers are addicted to nicotine, one of the main chemicals in tobacco smoke.
Nobody expects serious smoking-related illness to happen to them, but it can happen to anyone. Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body and can cause many serious and disabling conditions, including 16 types of cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease and asthma.
Smoking and Cancer
Tobacco smoking is the most common cause of cancer and is responsible for 1 in every 5 cancer deaths. All smokers face an increased risk of up to 16 different types of cancers including lung, mouth (oral cavity), throat (pharynx), oesophagus, stomach, bowel, liver, pancreas, nasal cavity and sinuses, voice box (larynx), cervix, ovary, bladder, kidney, ureter and bone marrow (myeloid leukaemia).
How smoking affects your body
There is no such thing as a safe cigarette or a safe level of smoking. Even younger smokers can experience serious health problems from smoking.
Click on the expand buttons ( 
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16 Cancers
Other Health Effects
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Acne
Smokers are more likely to get skin spots such as acne. Smoking weakens the blood circulation to the skin, which can increase the risk of infection.
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Brain
Smoking is a major cause of stroke, with smokers being four times more likely to have a stroke compared to non-smokers.
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Blood Vessels
Smokers have an increased risk of blood clots compared to non-smokers.
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Breath Odour
Smoking causes bad breath.
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Eyes
Smokers have four times the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration, the most common form of blindness, compared to past smokers or non-smokers. Smokers may also develop the disease up to 10 years earlier.
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Face
The chemicals in cigarette smoke cause the skin to lose its elasticity and have an unhealthy appearance.
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Hair
Chemicals from tobacco cause hair to become brittle, grey and break off before they are fully grown.
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Female Facial Hair
Smoking decreases female hormone levels, meaning there are more male hormones. This can cause an increase in facial hair for women.
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Female Arm Hair
Smoking increases male hormone levels, and as a result women are more likely to grow hairs on their arms.
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Heart
Smoking also causes coronary heart disease and is known to contribute to the clogging of arteries which reduces blood supply and the amount of oxygen in the body.
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Lung Cancer
Smoking is linked to as many as 80% of lung cancers. Current smokers are almost 9 times more likely to develop lung cancer than people who have never smoked.
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Lungs
Smoking damages the lungs and makes breathing more difficult. Smokers are at a much higher risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
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Mouth
Tar from cigarettes gets stuck in the cracks of tooth enamel causing the teeth to turn yellow.
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Nails
Smoking can also cause your nails to turn yellow.
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Pregnancy
Smoking while pregnant exposes a baby to the chemicals contained in cigarettes. Smoking in pregnancy is associated with low birth weight, premature birth, perinatal death (both stillbirth and newborn deaths) and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Women who smoke whilst pregnant may also be at increased risk of miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy.
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Female reproductive organs
Smokers show less interest in sex because their liver breaks down the female hormone, oestrogen. Cigarette smoke also harms the good bacteria in the vagina leading to high risk of vaginal infections and discharge.
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Male reproductive organs
Smoking weakens the blood flow to the penis and smokers are twice as likely to have erectile problems.
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Male Sperm
The toxins found in cigarettes decrease the density and mobility of sperm and harm sperm cell structure.
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Stomach
Smokers may be more prone to stomach ulcers because nicotine weakens the stomach’s defense system.
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Stress
It is a myth that smoking calms you down. Smokers are more stressed than non-smokers. As your body withdraws from nicotine, it can feel restless and irritable. Smoking can in fact cause more feelings of stress and anxiety.
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Weight Gain
Smoking can increase abdominal obesity.
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Wrinkles
Smoking decreases the skin’s collagen and elastin levels leading to wrinkles.
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Bladder Cancer
It is estimated that 32% of bladder cancer case are caused by smoking, and the risk of bladder cancer is three-times higher in current smokers.
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Bone Marrow Cancer
Benzene, which is one of many cancer-causing chemicals contained in cigarette smoke, is thought to cause bone marrow or blood cancer (also known as myeloid leukaemia). It is estimated that 1 in 10 cases of myeloid leukaemia are caused by smoking.
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Bowel Cancer
Many cancer-causing chemicals in cigarette smoke can reach the bowel via the bloodstream. Smokers are 20% more likely to develop bowel cancer than people who have never smoked.
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Cervical Cancer
Smoking damages cervical tissue and along with other factors, contributes to the development of cervical cancer. Current smokers have a 60% higher risk of cervical cancer compared to people who have never smoked.
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Kidney Cancer
Kidney cancer risk is 33% higher in current smokers than people who have never smoked. About 1 in 5 cancers of the kidney and ureter are caused by smoking.
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Liver Cancer
Chemicals in cigarette smoke are broken down in the liver, increasing the risk of cell damage which can develop into cancer. Some studies show up to a 56% increase in risk of liver cancer for current smokers compared with non-smokers. About 1 in 5 cases of liver cancer are caused by smoking.
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Mouth Cancer
People who smoke are almost 3 times more likely to develop oral cavity cancers than people who have never smoked. 59% of oral cavity/pharyngeal cancers are caused by smoking.
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Nasal Cavity and Sinuses
Cigarettes contain nitrosamines and other chemicals that cause cancer. When you smoke, the smoke can pass through your nasal cavity on its way to your lungs.
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Oesophagus
60% of oesophageal cancers are caused by smoking. Oesophageal adenocarcinoma risk is 85% higher amongst people who smoke compared to people who have never smoked.
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Ovaries
Current smokers have a 31% higher risk of mucinous ovarian cancer compared to people who have never smoked and, once diagnosed with cancer, current smokers experience worse health outcomes.
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Pancreas
Current smokers have double the risk of pancreatic cancer than people who have never smoked. Cigarette smoke causes tumours to grow and metastases in pancreatic cancer cells. Over 1 in 5 pancreatic cancers are caused by smoking.
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Stomach Cancer
Smoking causes almost 1 in 5 cases of stomach cancer. Male current smokers have a 62% higher risk and female current smokers have a 20% higher risk of developing stomach cancer than their non-smoking counterparts.
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Throat (Pharynx) Cancer
Current smokers are over 3 times more likely to develop pharyngeal cancer than people who have never smoked. Smoking damages the cells lining the throat, meaning the cells must grow more rapidly to repair the damage. The constant dividing of cells to repair the throat means more chance of damaged cells multiplying and becoming cancerous.
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Ureteral Cancer
Ureters are ducts that allow urine to pass from the kidneys to the bladder. 1 in 5 cancers of the kidney and ureter are caused by smoking.
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Voice box (Larynx) Cancer
The larynx is directly exposed to tobacco smoke when it is inhaled through the vocal chords. People who smoke are over 8 times more likely to develop laryngeal cancer than people who have never smoked.
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