Published: 07/26/2018 - Updated: 01/30/2019
Author: MSc. Miriam Reyes
Quit Smoking. If you’ve tried everything and you still can’t stop smoking, if you read the following information, it’s quite probably that you will never doubt quitting again.
Lots of smokers know that nicotine is the addictive and harmful substance in cigarettes. Other smokers also know that nicotine is a chemical and poisonous substance that farmers use as insecticide. But do any smokers know that cigarette smoke contains 4,000 extremely harmful chemical substances?
We don’t have room here to list every one of the 4,000 substances along with their harmful effects. But we can show you a few of them. If you are a smoker, or you know someone who smokes, it is very important that you help yourself, or the person you know, become aware of all the things that you and your body inhale and absorb when smoking.
Chemical substances in cigarette smoke
- Acetone: a varnish remover, extremely irritating to the human body.
- Naphthalene: a poison contained in mothballs.
- Insecticides: substances used to poison insects.
- Ammonia: a strong floor cleaner, also used to clean bathroom plaque.
- Ethanol: an alcohol irritant
- Arsenic: a dangerous poison
- Toluene: a strong, industrial-strength solvent.
- Butane: a liquid used in lighters.
- Formaldehyde: a substance used to embalm cadavers.
- Hydrocyanic acid: poison used in the gas chamber.
- Metals: cigarette smoke contains aluminium and lead, strong contaminants to the body.
- Methanol: rocket ship fuel.
- Carbon monoxide: a gas produced by vehicles when running.
- Vinyl chloride: this is a substance used to make PVC pipes, which is used to make tennis shoes and plumbing pipes.
- Nitric oxide phenols: powerful disinfectant.
- Nitrobenzene: a compound added to gasoline.
And the worst thing about it all is that not only does the smoker’s body have to struggle to clear out all this every day, but so do the bodies of our loved ones; they too, suffer from the absorption of these chemicals.
Children’s bodies in particular are notably affected, which can lead to terrible consequences like allergies, auto-immune deficiencies, and lung problems. Smoking is an addiction to tobacco, is considered a chronic systematic illness belonging to a whole group of addictions. If reading this still doesn’t convince you, or you fell like you just can’t do it, we recommend trying nicotine patches and other products that help on an emotional level. (continued in part 2)
Revised by: Dra. Loredana Lunadei on 01/30/2019
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