SMOKING AND ORAL CANCER

“Smoking Is Injurious to Health”, a very age old caution that we all have been known through years but had always kept a blind eye on it.

It’s a high time to rethink deeply on this once again. The death rate due to smoking has reached to 5 million per year worldwide. It is estimated that 10 million will die every year due to smoke-related diseases by 2020.


We all know the adverse effects of smoking and tobacco chewing yet never took a step to get rid of it. The most dangerous effect is cancer that can attack you in any form as an oral cancer or lung cancer or larynx cancer, bladder cancer and many to mention. Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in our body, also known as malignant cells. Ultimately interfering with the normal functioning of the body and can be fatal. 

Cigarette smoke consists of 4,000 different chemicals that can damage the cells and systems of the human body. Among which there are at least 80 chemicals that can cause cancer and hundreds of poisons like cyanide, ammonia, carbon monoxide that are considered to be fatal. Nicotine which is the major content of cigarette that is extremely hazardous to health.

What exactly does this nicotine do to our body is our prime concern, nicotine is a vasoconstrictor which means it constricts the flow of blood. This deprives the tissues from oxygen and nutrients and making them vulnerable to bacterial infections. This is the major cause that leads to gum diseases, periodontal diseases, heart diseases, etc. The increased risk of periodontal disease caused due to smoking leads to tooth and bone loss due to complete destruction of the supporting tissues. 

Coming back to oral cancer, Tobacco chewing is equally hazardous to health especially our oral health. Chewing of tobacco leaves hazardous juices on the teeth and lips. These develop extensive white patches on the mucosa termed leukoplakia which is a precancerous condition of oral mucosa.

The most infected area in oral cancer is the tongue and the area below the tongue which slowly spreads into cheeks and throat. Other effects of tobacco are discoloration of lips and lip cancer, burning or loss of sensation of tongue, hairy tongue, difficulty in swallowing, tooth decay, bad breath, etc.
( http://www.tobacco-facts.info/oral_cancer.htm)

The study reveals that non-smokers are also put into risk by exposure to others smoking. It is referred to as passive smoking or secondhand smoking. It is estimated that non-smokers exposed to smoke are at risk of lung cancer. 

Well it is a myth that smoking relieves from stress, it is time for the smokers to realize that nicotine is a stimulant and not a relaxant. Studies revealed that smokers undergo high stress levels than non-smokers and also leads to impotency. 

Let us pass good habits and good health to the generations to come. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

                                          QUIT SMOKING AND SAVE EARTH!!!!