Reasons to Quit

Tobacco affects your looks almost immediately

1. Your skin, home, clothes, fingers, and breath will be stinky.
2. Smoking prematurely ages the skin by wearing away proteins that give the skin elasticity.

Smokers are more likely to lose their vision and hearing

3. Smoking can cause a variety of eye diseases, such as cataracts, glaucoma, etc. If left untreated, can lead to permanent vision loss.
4. Adult smokers are more likely to suffer from hearing loss.

Tobacco harms almost every organ of the body

5. Lifetime tobacco smokers lose at least 10 years of life in average.
6. The use of nicotine and tobacco products increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
7. Just a few cigarettes a day, occasional smoking, or exposure to second-hand smoke increase the risk of heart disease.
8. For each puff of cigarette, at least 70 carcinogens will be delivered to the body.
9. Tobacco use is responsible for 25% of all cancer deaths globally.
10. Tobacco smoking is the primary cause of lung cancer, causing over two thirds of lung cancer deaths globally.
11. Smokers are up to 22 times more likely to develop lung cancer in their lifetime than non-smokers.
12. Smoking and smokeless tobacco use cause oral cancer, cancers of the lips, throat (pharynx and larynx) and oesophagus.
13. Smokers are at a significantly higher risk of developing acute myeloid leukaemia; cancer of the nasal and paranasal sinus cavities; colorectal, kidney, liver, pancreatic, stomach or ovarian cancer; and cancer of the lower urinary tract (including the bladder, ureter and renal pelvis).
14. One in five smokers will suffer from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in their lifetime.
15. Smoking can exacerbate asthma in adults and increasing the risk of severe asthma attacks.
16. Tobacco smokers have up to twice the risk of stroke and a fourfold increased risk of heart disease.
17. Smokers have a higher risk of diabetes and dementia.
18. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, and it is estimated that 14% of Alzheimer’s cases worldwide can be attributed to smoking.
19. Smokers have a significantly higher risk of post-surgical complications than non-smokers.
20. Tobacco smokers are harder to wean off mechanical ventilation. This often lengthens their intensive care unit (ICU) and overall hospital stay.
21. Smokers are likely to experience gastrointestinal disorders, such as stomach ulcers, inflammatory bowel disease, associated with abdominal cramps, persistent diarrhea, fever and rectal bleeding, and cancers of the gastrointestinal tract.
22. The components of tobacco smoke can damage the immune system and put smokers at risk of pulmonary infections.
23. Women smokers are more likely to have painful menstruation and more severe menopausal symptoms.
24. The menopause of female smokers will be one to four years earlier, because smoking will reduce the production of eggs in the ovaries, leading to loss of reproductive function and subsequent low estrogen levels.

Tobacco and nicotine use can harm the fetus

25. Tobacco use and exposure to tobacco smoke during pregnancy can increase the risk for miscarriage or fetal death.
26. Stillbirths are also more common, as carbon monoxide and nicotine in tobacco smoke can cause oxygen deprivation and placental abnormalities.
27. Pregnant smokers are at a higher risk of ectopic pregnancy.
28. Electronic cigarettes pose significant risks to pregnant women who use them, as they can damage the growing fetus.

All forms of tobacco are deadly

29. More than 8 million people die from tobacco every year.
30. Tobacco can kill half of its users. Use of tobacco in any form robs you of your health.
31. Waterpipe smoking is as harmful as other forms of tobacco use.

E-cigarettes can harm the health and safety of children

32. The children of smokers will experience reduced lung function and will develop chronic respiratory diseases in adulthood.
33. Fires and explosions caused by electronic cigarettes can cause serious injuries, including burns and explosion.
34. School-age children who are exposed to secondhand smoke put them at risk for asthma.
35. Children under two years of age who are exposed to second-hand smoke at home may suffer from middle ear disease, possibly leading to hearing loss and deafness.
36. Children and adolescents who use e-cigarettes are at least twice as likely to smoke traditional cigarettes later in life.
37. Using e-cigarettes increases the risk of heart and lung diseases.
38. The nicotine in e-cigarettes is highly addictive that can damage the brain development of children.

Heated tobacco products (HTPs) are harmful to health

39. People who use HTPs are exposed to toxic substances, many of which are carcinogens.
40. HTPs are themselves tobacco products, so switching from traditional cigarettes to HTPs does not mean quitting.
41. There is insufficient evidence to support that HTPs are less harmful than traditional cigarettes.

Tobacco threatens the health of relatives and friends

42. Every year, more than 1 million people worldwide die from exposure to second-hand smoke.
43. Non-smokers exposed to secondhand smoke have an increased risk of developing lung cancer.
44. E-cigarettes also expose non-smokers and bystanders to nicotine and other harmful chemicals.
45. Exposure to second-hand smoke is associated with type 2 diabetes.

Tobacco is expensive

46. A study found that the average personal expenses of smokers due to smoking amounted to 1.4 million US dollars, including spending on cigarettes and related medical expenses.
47. Tobacco use has increased the global economic burden. The cost of health care for the treatment of tobacco-induced diseases and the loss of human capital due to tobacco-attributable sickness and death are estimated to be 1.4 trillion US dollars.

Tobacco pollutes the environment

48. There are different harmful substances in cigarette butts, including arsenic, lead, nicotine and formaldehyde. These substances are leached from discarded butts into the aquatic environment and soil from discarded cigarette butts.
49. Deforestation caused by tobacco cultivation can lead to biological soil erosion and degradation, water pollution, and increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
50. Drainage from tobacco growing areas usually involves many chemicals, including pesticides, fertilizers and growth regulators, which may affect the sources of drinkable water.