Smoking is a down right filthy habit that affects not only your health, but the health of others around you. A pity on your children if you smoke around them.

And as governments continuously impose higher taxes on tobacco, the costs of lighting up can run into the thousands per year for each smoker.

So why do people still smoke? Simple answer - nicotine addiction!
Nicotine Levels on the Increase

Nicotine

Nicotine addiction has been found to be one of the hardest addictions to kick.

With an increase in anti-smoking campaigns, tobacco companies are upping the levels of nicotine in their cigarettes to make it all that harder to quit smoking.

Nicotine is odorless and colorless and varies in concentrations from 1 to 16 grams per cigarette.

Nicotine enters the bloodstream together with tar, reaching the brain in less than 10 seconds. In less than a minute, nicotine spreads throughout the entire body. It then increases the heart rate and blood pressure, providing the smoker with alertness and a relaxing effect.

In less that 30 minutes, the nicotine effects decrease, and the smoker becomes irritable and less alert. That’s why they have the tendency to grab and light another cigarette to get a new "fix" from nicotine.

This explains the addictive effect of smoking. Before a person knows it, they have lit more than 10 cigarettes in one day.


Tar

Tar attaches to the linings of the lungs and destroys its hair like projections (cilia) which traps harmful particles inhaled into the lungs.

Tar also decreases the lung's elasticity, making it harder to pump much needed oxygen throughout the body.
Carbon Monoxide

Yet another toxic chemical released into your body when inhaling the smoke of cigarettes.

Carbon monoxide binds with hemoglobin, decreasing the ability of red blood cells to supply large amount of oxygen to the body. That’s why smokers easily get tired because they need to take more breaks in order to compensate for the lack of oxygen in the body.
Long-Term Effects

As time goes by, the long-term effects of smoking become even more clear.

Effects on the skin are apparent. A smoker develops stains on their teeth and fingers and develop halitosis (bad breath). Even the smoker’s clothes and environment smells like cigarette smoke.

Cardiovascular diseases develop because of the accumulation of plaque in the lining of blood vessels, especially on the coronary arteries, causing atherosclerosis.

A decrease in the functioning of the lungs can lead to diseases like chronic bronchitis and emphysema, which are irreversible diseases of the respiratory system.

Cancer, heart disease, increased risk of illness and reduced athletic performace is what a smoker really orders each time they buy their next packet of cigarettes.
Dangers of Smoking in the News

* To quit smoking use online resources like online pharmacy, no smoking tips and other valuable resourcesPitchEngine25 hours ago

Smoking kills This is something we all know. The governments of all countries around the world continuously try to make the public aware of the evils of smoking. Through these public awareness programs, governments have managed to stop many potential smokers to stop starting this habit. In fact, there are many smokers who have quit smoking because of these awareness drives. But does the world ...
* Passive smoking kills 600,000 a year:studyBrisbane Times3 days ago

Passive smoking claims more than 600,000 lives each year around the world - an estimated one per cent of all deaths, a global study has found.
* Passive Smoking Kills 600,000 People Every YearThirdAge46 hours ago

Passive smoking, also known as secondhand smoking, kills about 600,000 people every year, a recent study discovered. The World Health Organization's Tobacco-Free Initiative, which conducted the study, found that the passive smoking leads to other fatal diseases, such as

Quit Smoking Advice - watch this!


http://hubpages.com/hub/dangersofsmoking

camel lights because my lungs are pussies and can't handle full flavors

Did you type all of that out?

nah, that's way tl;dr, let alone the idea that I wrote it. It's pasted from the page linked at the bottom of my post.

is there something i can smoke to look cool but that won't have nasty effects on my health?

Smoking doesn't look cool, though.* Whenever I see someone smoking, I always think, why the hell are they smoking? Smoking is gross. It doesn't even look cool anymore, it just looks stupid. Plus people end up standing outside in the rain and cold, they look like junkies. I honestly don't get it.



*offer void in avatars

I say this after having an embarrassing smoking habit in the mid 00s..

It takes a certain person to make a cigarette look cool. Asher's avatar is proof of that. Actors are professionals, though. Joe-six pack isn't pulling off the cigarette-from-a-sixties-new wave film look when he's smoking outside of buffalo wild wings, yanno?

I agree. Also, one of the grossest things ever is an old-looking wrinkled Alabama woman smoking, who looks 63 but is probably 44.

Guys, pretty much all of the ladies I knew in college that smoked were exceptionally easy. Actually, pretty much all of the ladies I knew (and know) that smoked period were (and are) exceptionally easy.

NOTHING WRONG WITH AT

if she smokes, she pokes..

I have a pack of American Spirits that I enjoy from time to time. Basically once a month, unless I start drinking heavily. Then all bets are off.

Blue or yellow Mick?

I used to smoke Newports, but I switched to Marlboro Milds when they came out. Haven't smoked regularly since around late 2005.

Marlboro Lights. Just started smoking again and I only kinda feel bad about it.

Yellow.

camels

Djarum

I enjoyed about four camel lights the other night, then came home and was violently ill. Still feel way off. Is my body trying to tell me something?