Shining A New Light On Smoking Dangers

Most people are aware of the smoking dangers associated with tobacco cigarettes. These smoking dangers can and do include a chronic cough, bad breath, emphysema, and cancer. Knowing the smoking dangers alone is not enough to make most tobacco cigarette smokers quit. Why? It is a tremendous addiction.

Most people are unaware that up to two-thirds of adolescents who make it past their second cigarette become habitual smokers. It sounds unbelievable but that is according to a 1988 study reported in the "New England Journal of Medicine." So one of the biggest smoking dangers is that getting hooked on tobacco cigarettes is very easy.

It takes only a few seconds for the nicotine from one puff on a tobacco cigarette to reach the brain. Once the effects get to the brain, it stimulates the release of brain chemicals, one of which is acetylcholine. This is a neurotransmitter triggers your body to be alert to what is coming through. This smoking danger causes excited body reactions like a more rapid heartbeat.

When the person continues to smoke tobacco cigarettes, the brain begins to release other chemicals. These chemicals are called beta-endorphins. The beta-endorphins try to calm and relax the person. The smoking danger is now that the tobacco cigarette has the ability to give pleasure by both stimulating and calming the nervous system.

The chemical changes caused by this smoking danger can help us understand why some doctors believe that the nicotine in tobacco cigarettes as addictive as heroin. It also helps to explain why the tobacco cigarette smoker has a very difficult time quitting even though they may be aware of all of the smoking dangers such as lung cancer and other medical problems. The good news is that the benefits of quitting are very great and it does not matter how old the tobacco cigarette smoker is or how long they have smoked.