CHAPTER 14

Tobacco

Tobacco Products: An Overview

Tobacco is a woody plant that has been used for centuries to make many products. There are more than 4,000 hazardous chemicals in tobacco.

Many of which cause cancer. Nicotine is a highly addictive drug found in all tobacco

products. Addictive means capable of causing a user to develop intense

cravings. Nicotine addiction happens very quickly. Nicotine raises your heart rate and blood pressure. Nicotine is found in all tobacco products.

Two dangerous chemicals in cigarette smoke: Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, poisonous gas that is

created when tobacco burns. The heart and brain are harmed by reduced oxygen supply.

Tar is a dark thick liquid that forms when tobacco burns. It can coat the bronchi which are passageways that branch from the

trachea to each lung. Tar can cause cancer.

Tobacco Products: An Overview

Pipe tobacco, cigars, clove and flavored cigarettes are all smokable. The smoke from all tobacco products contains thousands of dangerous chemicals. It doesn’t matter how you smoke it! Including hookah. One cigar can contain as much tobacco and

nicotine as an entire pack of cigarettes do. Cigar smoke contains up to 90 times more

cancer causing chemicals than those found in cigarette smoke.

Electronic cigarettes contain no tobacco, but they do contain liquid nicotine which is heated into a vapor which is inhaled. The nicotine perpetuates the addiction, it is not

a “stop smoking” solution.

Tobacco Products: An Overview

Tobacco is not always smoked. Smokeless tobacco is ground

tobacco this is chewed, placed inside the mouth along the gum line, or inhale through the nose. Chewing tobacco can be loose leaf

or finely chopped and pressed together to form a small bunch. Often called “dip” or “spit tobacco”.

Snuff is finely ground tobacco that is inhaled or held in the mouth or cheeks. It is either loose or wrapped in a pouch.

Tobacco Products: An Overview

Tobacco Effects

The earliest effect of smoking tobacco is how you smell.

Smoking creates nausea and you may get sick. The lack of oxygen to the brain causes the dizziness. A chronic effect is a consequence that remains with

a person for a long time. Bad breath Persistent cough Excess mucus Discolored teeth Shortness of breath

Tobacco Effects

Smokeless tobacco effects include: Bad breath Yellow teeth Leading cause of gum disease Can lead to disfigurement

Tobacco Effects

Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), also known as “second hand smoke”, is a mixture of exhaled smoke and smoke from the burning tip of the cigar or cigarette.

Nonsmokers who breath in the ETS experience some of the same health problems that affect smokers. Children of parents who smoke

can have reduced lung growth and are at risk for lung illnesses such as severe asthma.

Tobacco Effects Until recently, there were very few boundaries

for smokers. Now more and more places ban smoking.

The effects of ETS are recognized as very dangerous to the health and well being of non-smokers.

In the United States, more than 400,000 people die every year from smoking related illnesses.

Teen smokers under the age of 18 could face legal punishment for smoking.

Tobacco can place strains upon relationships. Knowing someone who has died from tobacco

related disease can create an emotional burden of smoking for the smoker.

Tobacco, Disease, and Death

Cigarettes are the only product in the world, when used as intended, will kill the consumer.

Cancer is a disease in which damaged cells grow out of control and destroy healthy tissue. Lung cancer causes more deaths per year than any

other cancer. Smoking leads Emphysema which is a disease that results in the destruction of the alveoli, the tiny air sacs in the lungs.

Tobacco use is also attributed to the following types of cancer: mouth, throat, stomach, bowel, bladder, pancreas, and kidney.

Tobacco, Disease, and Death

Tobacco, Disease, and Death

The two most common smoking-related diseases are: Chronic bronchitis is a disease in which the lining of

the airways becomes very swollen and irritated. Large amounts of mucus are produced and the person coughs a lot. It can be very hard for the person to breath.

Emphysema is a disease in which the tiny air sacs and walls of the lungs are destroyed. The damage is permanent, the holes in the air sacs do not heal.

The risk of these illnesses increases with the number of cigarettes a person smokes each day and how long they have been smoking.

Tobacco, Disease, and Death Cardiovascular diseases are diseases of the

circulatory system. This includes heart disease.

Each year there are 150,000 deaths in the US attributed to smoking-related heart disease. 30,000 of those people were non-smokers. (ETS)

Blood vessels constrict, naturally, from smoking. A blood clot is a solid mass of blood particles that can form when the blood flow slows in constricted arteries.

Tobacco, Disease, and Death

Other diseases attributed to tobacco use: Gum and dental diseases Pregnancy complications, including

premature birth Eye diseases and weakened muscles of

the eye You get sick more often, weakened

immune response You heal more slowly because

chemicals in tobacco products make it harder for the body to attack bacteria and viruses that enter the body

Poor circulation to your extremities

Tobacco and Addiction

The government has found that tobacco companies market to young people. Tobacco needs new users to take over from the dying. Some smokers begin at the “ripe” age of 11 or 12. Every day more than 6,000 teens and preteens try their

first cigarette or other tobacco product. The earlier someone tries tobacco, the higher the

chances are that person will become a regular user. The earlier someone starts, the harder it is to quit.

Tobacco and Addiction

All forms of tobacco contain the drug nicotine.

Nicotine is an extremely powerful drug. The effects of nicotine reach the brain

within seconds after smoking. When you are used to the

effects of nicotine, the effects are less obvious, but more dangerous.

Nicotine is addictive as powerful drugs such as cocaine or heroin.

Tobacco and Addiction The more a person uses a drug, the less effect

the drug has. Tolerance is the process of the body getting used to a drug. Smokers slowly increase the amount of tobacco

they use because tolerance requires more tobacco to achieve the initial effects of smoking.

Your brain literally changes, by creating more receptors specifically for nicotine reception. Physical dependence is a state in which

the body needs a drug to function normally. Drug addiction is the inability to control

one’s use of a drug.

Tobacco and Addiction

Psychological dependence is a person’s belief that he or she needs a drug to feel good or act normally. This is a mental need for a drug.

Physical dependence is an addiction in which the body develops a chemical need for a drug. This can happen quickly when using tobacco.

Tolerance is a need for larger and larger amounts of a drug to produce the same effect.

Withdrawal is a series of symptoms a person experiences when he or she stops using an addictive substance. Withdrawal symptoms related to smoking are anxiety, irritability,

tiredness, headaches, and poor concentration. Not everyone reacts the same to tobacco.

Social factors and family history may influence how you respond to tobacco consumption.

Quitting

Only 3 percent of those attempting to quit smoking actually have long term success.

A relapse is a return to the use of a drug. People often fail to quit smoking.

It is difficult to quit due to the physical and psychological dependence as well as the extreme withdrawal discomfort of quitting nicotine. Nicotine changes your brain to want more nicotine. The sooner you quit, the easier it is to quit. Quitting becomes more and more difficult over

time.

Quitting

A serious attempt to quit smoking would take thought, commitment and planning.

Cessation is the act of stopping something entirely and permanently.

There are many ways to quit. It depends on the individual, what works best for them.

Most people have to avoid situations that have tempted them to use tobacco in the past.

Cost of Tobacco Use

Tobacco is expensive. The average smoker, 1½ packs per day, spends about $3,200 per

year on cigarettes. In just 10 years time that smoker will have spent more than $32,000.

Secondhand smoke is the air that has been contaminated by tobacco smoke. It comes in two forms:

1. Mainstream smoke which is the smoke that is inhaled and exhaled by the smoker.

2. Side-stream smoke, the smoke that comes from the burning end of the cigarette, pipe, or cigar.

The EPA has labeled both as human carcinogens. A passive smoker is a nonsmoker who breathes in

secondhand smoke. Each pack of cigarettes sold results in more than $10 in

added costs for health care and lost productivity.

Cost of Tobacco Use

In 2005 the tobacco industry spent $9.78 billion on advertising and coupons. The top 5 tobacco companies spend $35 million a day advertising and

promoting their product. Why do you think they use young, attractive models or cartoon

characters to advertise? Promotion is making a product seem wonderful by hosting games or

concerts, giving out free products, or setting up displays in stores. Who do you think Big Tobacco wants for their newest customers? Target audience is a group of people for which a product is intended. Product placement is a paid arrangement a company has made to show its products in media such as television or film. Point of sale promotions are advertising campaigns in which a product is promoted at a store’s checkout counter.

Why People Use Tobacco

Why would anyone start? Peer pressure is one of the major reasons that teens try tobacco.

Pressure from peers is a strong influence from a friend or a classmate. Some use tobacco because they think it makes them seem cooler

or more mature. Some believe smoking will help them feel more confident around

others. Watching someone you admire smoking.

The movie industry is cutting back on characters who smoke in PG13 and in PG movies and even considering giving an R rating to movies portraying smoking characters.

When you base your behavior on how others act, that is called modeling. Children of smokers are more likely to become smokers. Seeing smoking

in the home makes smoking “OK” for them. Being a rebel, curiosity, are further reasons why teens start

smoking.

Why People Use Tobacco

Some of the strongest influences to try tobacco come from within. Risk taking behaviors, curiosity, rebelliousness, weakness to peer pressure, boredom, or just thinking the health risks don’t apply to them are all reason people have fallen victim to the lure of tobacco.

If you need help resisting temptation, remember that most people do not use tobacco. Around 75% of Americans do not use tobacco.

Resisting Tobacco Use

7 reasons to say NO1. Overall health

Non-smokers get sick less often.

2. Clear, healthy skin More oxygen to your skins cells by not smoking.

3. Fresh breath Chronic halitosis when you smoke.

4. Clean, fresh smelling clothes and hair Smoke odors stick to clothing and hair. It is not easily removed.

5. Better sports performance Your respiratory function is not depleted and overall better health.

6. Money savings Taxes will continue upward. You could have money to spend on other

things.

7. Environmental health By not smoking you reduce the amount of second-hand smoke.

New Cigarette Packages

New mandated advertising on cigarette packages.

New Cigarette Packages

New mandated advertising on cigarette packages.

Being Tobacco Free

Most of you will be offered a “smoke” at at some point. Planning for that experience can make it easier to deal with when it happens. There are many ways to say “NO”.

People who pressure others to do things, are often uncertain about their own decisions.

One of the best way to resist tobacco is to avoid environments where it is used. If you spend less time in the environment, you are more likely to use less tobacco. If you can’t avoid the environment, then leave when tobacco is being used or ask them to smoke outside.

Being Tobacco Free

Just because someone uses tobacco doesn’t mean they have all of the influence. There are plenty of people who can be a positive influence and be tobacco free. Positive peer pressure is an influence from friends that helps you make the best choices for your health.

Without the secret or the guilt of tobacco use, relationships can be better and family members and friends can support your decision to be tobacco free.

Good physical and social health can lead to good emotional health. Choosing to be tobacco free is a big step toward complete health and well-being.

Quitting

Some of the damage done by smoking can never be reversed. Quitting does stop further damage. Quitting will improve overall health.

Quitting is extremely difficult. The body goes through many physical and

psychological challenges. It takes time and willpower.

Quitting cold turkey means stopping all use of tobacco products immediately. Individuals will experience withdrawal symptoms

for up to six months.

Quitting

There are several medicines to help someone who wants to quit smoking.

Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) are products that assist a person in breaking a tobacco habit. This is a form of medicine that contains safe amounts of

nicotine. This therapy helps quiet some of the discomfort of nicotine withdrawal. Nicotine gum and patches are the most common forms of NRT.

Quitting now can help you avoid the diseases and the many unpleasant side effects smokers have to deal with. Positive changes in your health begin immediately after quitting!

Quitting

If you know someone who is trying to quit, you should share the following: List your reasons Get support and encouragement from family or

friends Set small goals Choose tobacco-free places to spend time Change your tobacco-related habits Be physically active Keep trying