It is hard to argue that smoking does not affect individuals who do not smoke. Second hand smoke contains over 40 toxic substances that are known to cause cancer and many more adverse health conditions in passive bystanders. Furthermore, many of these toxins have stronger concentrations in exhaled smoke than what is found in first hand smoke. The population most at risk from environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is the least able to defend themselves: children. However, there is an alternative for traditional tobacco users. They can alleviate health concerns for themselves and the general population by switching to electronic cigarettes.

What Are The Health Risks For Tobacco Users?

Smoking traditional cigarettes invokes complex, long term, and systemic health concerns. At the top of the list for organs susceptible to damage are lungs and the heart. The first area involves respiratory harm. Over time, the damage done to the tiny air sacs that line the lungs can lead to the development of emphysema, cancer, pneumonia, bronchitis, and even tuberculosis, which in turn lowers the level of oxygen traveling throughout the body. This reduces energy levels and forces other organs to work harder than they are designed to.

This process is evident in the circulatory system which, when overexerted, can increase the risk of stroke and heart attack. By damaging the circulatory system in this fashion, blood moving through the body is severely impacted. The heart is forced to work harder in order to move enough oxygen to sustain the body, which can cause blood pressure to rise. An increased heart rate can enable fat deposits to cling to blood vessel walls, thus increasing artery hardening. This condition is very painful. An insufficient level of oxygen flowing throughout the body can lead to gangrene and a possible amputation of affected areas. Slower blood flow can also reduce the body’s ability to fight infections. The stresses caused on the heart by all of these possibilities have the potential to cause heart-related fatalities.

Smoke-Related Health Issues In Children

Environmental tobacco smoke has been causally linked with a number of adverse health conditions in children. Young children are more vulnerable to second hand smoke in the home because their immune systems are not as fully developed as that of an adult, making them less able to process the air they breathe. Furthermore, they have a reduced ability to complain about things that bother or hurt them because they are too young or because their complaints are more easily ignored. Many children in smoke-affected homes suffer from lower respiratory tract infections, also known as croup and pneumonia, increased fluid in the middle ear, upper respiratory tract irritation, reduced lung function, additional episodes of asthma, increased severity of asthmatic symptoms, and reduced oxygen flow to tissues, which can result in anemia, cyanotic heart disease, or chronic lung disease. Childhood exposure to traditional tobacco smoke is responsible for up to 13% of asthma cases, 20% of all lung infections in children under five years of age, and 24% of tonsillectomies.

Unborn children also suffer from second hand smoke. Maternal smoking can affect a fetus by depriving it of needed oxygen and other necessary nutrients, which may result in intellectual deficits and behavioral problems, low birth weight, reduced lung function in a newborn baby, and complications during pregnancy. ETS is also associated with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), acute middle ear infections, tonsillectomy, childhood leukemia, slower growth rates, upper respiratory tract infections, and unfavorable cholesterol levels, and initiation of atherosclerosis (heart disease) in the very young.

How To Improve Your And Your Children’s Health By Using A Smokeless Cigarette

Most of the health concerns related to traditional tobacco smoking are the product of the 4000 plus chemical compounds created by the burning of the 599 additives found in traditional cigarettes. However, there is a viable alternative - the smokeless cigarette. Electronic cigarettes contain only water, propylene glycol, nicotine, and tobacco flavoring, which lower an individual’s chances of contracting any one of the many illnesses associated with traditional cigarettes to that of a normal person. Not only does a smokeless cigarette contain none of the harmful chemicals found in traditional cigarettes, but also they can actually assist a smoker in reducing their nicotine intake levels. Cartridges come in a variety of nicotine strengths, allowing the individual to decide how much they ingest as opposed to a cigarette manufacturer making that decision for them.

Electronic cigarettes are a viable option for individuals who are unable or unwilling to quit smoking. Because a smokeless cigarette does not contain actual smoke, flame, tobacco, tar, or carcinogens, a smoker can continue to smoke without negatively impacting their or their family’s health.