Everyone knows they shouldn’t smoke, but to find out exactly why this is true, read the 7 Chemicals in Cigarettes That Cause Heart Disease. Can something as small as a cigarette really be that harmful? The answer is yes. The 7 Chemicals in Cigarettes that Cause Cancer shows some of the ways. But cancer isn’t the only health problem caused by cigarettes. There are many more, including respiratory infections, infertility, poor vision, strokes, too much blood clotting, bad teeth, pregnancy problems, COPD, aneurysms and most of all heart disease.
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Smoking causes all types of cardiovascular diseases, mild and severe. Coronary heart diseases from chest pains (angina) to heart failure and heart attacks can all be related to smoking. In the 7 Chemicals in Cigarettes That Cause Heart Disease, discover some of the 4,000 cigarette substances that are harmful to your heart.
7. Nicotine
The Quit Smoking Community states that this chemical raises blood pressure, thereby increasing the risk of heart attack. Nicotine is highly addictive and causes a “buzz” feeling and increased energy in smokers. But what those smokers don’t know is that their heart rate is accelerating unnecessarily when exposed to this chemical and the heart is forced to work harder and faster than normal. However, in order to get rid of these harmful effects, you can’t just stop smoking cigarettes. Nicotine patches and smokeless tobacco also contain the chemical and produce the same effects.
6. Carbon Monoxide
This substance found in cigarettes is extremely harmful to those who already have coronary heart disease. Even breathing and smoking low levels of it can cause serious damage to the cardiovascular system. It’s the same invisible and odorless gas emitted by running cars in closed garages that’s known to lull whole families to their sleepy death.
5. Ammonia
Ammonia consumed by a human is typically extracted in waste, but high levels of consumption of this chemical can allow that waste to stay inside the body and cause all manner of diseases, from gastrointestinal leading to (you guessed it) heart disease. Another harmful product that contains ammonia? Fast food burgers and cheap hamburger meat. “In March 2012, ABC News claimed that 70% of ground beef sold in U.S. supermarkets contained this additive,” says NutriStart. The 7 chemicals in cigarettes that cause heart disease aren’t only found in cigarettes.
4. Arsenic
This substance causes increased risk of heart disease, even at low to moderate levels of consumption. It is known to cause cardiac arrhythmias (irregular heart beat), thickening of the arteries and hypertension as well. Other body parts affected by this chemical include the liver, lungs, kidneys and skin.
3. DDT
Also found in insecticide, DDT is a pesticide known to increase cardiovascular disease risk in premenopausal women especially. Infants who are exposed to this pesticide while in the womb are also subject to greater risk of heart attacks and heart failure later in life.
2. Hydrogen Cyanide
According to the Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry, “hydrogen cyanide is highly toxic by all routes of exposure and may cause abrupt onset of profound CNS, cardiovascular and respiratory effects, leading to death within minutes.” In other words, you could be peacefully smoking a cigarette one minute and dead on the floor the next.
1. Every Chemical That Causes Lung Disease
While this may seem like a bit of a stretch, we do know it to be true that cigarettes, in general, are more harmful to your lungs than anything else. But lung disease or even mild oxygen deficiency is directly related to cardiovascular disease. If the heart’s oxygen supply is prevented even a little, it must work harder to do its job. After a consistent or complete oxygen prevention to the heart, it will exhaust itself and ultimately fail. Basically, anything that causes lung disease (cigarettes) also causes heart disease.
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Of the 4,000 chemicals found in cigarette smoke, a great deal of them are harmful to the heart. Smoking has a reputation of commonly causing cancer, but heart disease is yet another negative effect of the addiction. And if you’re not convinced to stop smoking yet, please read the 7 Chemicals in Cigarettes That Cause Heart Disease again.
