The Pearl Post
The effects of tobacco on your body and lifeWednesday, February 22, 2012 By Daylin Ramirez
Sure, it may seem glamorous and cool, and you might actually think it makes you look stylish and fabulous, but the truth is noccotine, which is found in tobacco, is an addicting drug and getting hooked on something like smoking when you’re a teen, can lead to dull and fatal endings. Tobacco, the main ingredient in ciga- rettes, contains a highly addictive drug called nicotine. When a cigarette is lighted and smoked, the nicotine then releases a chemical called dopamine into your body, which is known for its ability to make you feel “good.” Your body will then become addicted to the nicotine making it a very difficult quit. According to the American Council for Drug Education, there are about 47 mil- lion smokers in America, 30% of which are adolescents. The average age of first use being at around 13 years old. Statistics from kidheath.org say nine out of 10 tobacco users begin smoking before they’re 18 years old. These users will also become addicted. However the nicotine in the cigarettes may not be the only thing helping the addiction in teens, but perhaps there are other obstacles, such as peer pressure or the pressure on teens to al- ways try to look “cool” among other teens. The truth is, you can smoke as many cigarettes as you would like to, whether it be to “feel better” about something that’s been difficult in your life or if it’s simply to it in. But in the end you’re going to end up with even larger problems than you began with. Smoking has proven itself as a killer. It causes lung cancer, emphysema, heart at- tacks and heart disease. Smoking can also shorten one’s life span by 10 years. Those are only the internally physical effects. As cool as teens may think smoking looks when they’re young, they’ll realize by the time they’ve smoked for several years, that they won’t look too fabulous anymore. The yellow teeth, bad breath, and wrinkles will eventually begin to show, and not to mention that after smoking for so many years, if they did the math, they’d realize how much money had been spent on buying cigarettes alone. Don’t be fooled by the media, celebrities or even friends who smoke. In the end, smoking to look “cool” isn’t worth your life. |