First, a few quick facts on cancer (you can find these on the American Cancer Society website)
-Approximately 1.7 million cases of cancer will be diagnosed this year
-Approximately 595,00 people will die from cancer this year
-Cancer is a disease of older people, >85% of all cancers are in those greater than the age of 50
-Cancer is the second leading cause of death exceeded only by heart disease and it accounts for nearly 25% of all deaths
-Lifetime probability of developing cancer is ~40% for males and 38% for females
-Lifetime probability of dying from cancer in males is approximately 22% while for females it is 19%
I think we can all agree that smoking is bad for ones health. I also did not write this to make anyone feel bad because of the terrible habit they have developed. I truly hope that this information will make the current smokers try a little harder and the non-smokers never want to start or restart.
Believe me, I know that the tobacco companies knew what they were doing when they created that cancer stick. Now, let’s take a moment to go over some of the facts about smoking.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States and cigarette smoking accounts for almost all cases. What that simply means is, lung cancer is the most preventable cancer in this Country. Smoking and its direct and indirect effects lead to approximately 440,000 deaths per year.
Compared to non-smokers, men who smoke are 25 times more likely to develop lung cancer and women are almost 26 times mores likely.
Besides lung cancer, smoking is known to increase the risk of 17 other cancers. Examples include: kidney, bladder, esophageal, stomach, pancreas, breast, colon, rectal and acute myeloid leukemia to name a few.
Cigarette smoking has declined since the Surgeon General report in 1964, however, approximately 20% of males and 16% females continue to smoke.
Each year approximately 45,000 non-smoking adults die of lung cancer and heart disease as a result of second-hand smoke.
What’s in a cigarette? Lead, arsenic, acetone (found in nail polish remover), benzene, formaldehyde, nicotine and about 600 other ingredients! However, when burned these 600 ingredients lead to approximately 7000 chemicals! You can find this information on the American Lung Association website.
Between 2009 and 2012 smoking attributable economic costs were between $289 and $333 billion dollars each year.
9 out of 10 smokers start before the age of 18.
More than 20 million Americans have died from smoking since 1964.
On average smokers die 13-14 years earlier than non-smokers.
Smokers today are more likely to develop lung cancer than smokers in 1964 (can find this and other information at Betobaccofree.hhs.gov)
A recent study lead by Ohio State University researchers found evidence that microscopic ventilation holes in the filters of cigarettes could be contributing to the incidence/rates of adenocarcinoma of the lung and have asked the FDA to review to see if the ventilation holes should be prohibited.
As you can see, there are many facts to back up the fact that smoking is one of the most dangerous things you can do. These in all honesty are just a few. However, if you smoke it is not to late to quit. There are many options available out there to help you along the difficult journey.
Here are a few resources if you would like to learn more about tobacco, as well as, ways to quit
https://www.cancer.org/content/cancer/en_header.html
https://betobaccofree.hhs.gov/
http://www.lung.org/
P.S. if you enjoy these please go to my webpage: hemoncdoc.com and subscribe to the blog via email. That way you are updated each time a new blog is posted.
Thank you