Doc, I have heard that cigarettes affect teenagers.How?

One of my readers who identified himself as Mackey wrote to me, asking if there were any health hazards that are specifically linked to cigarette smoking among the teenagers.

He wrote,“Hi Doc, I read your Monday column on how the world is raising eyebrows on tobacco trends. I have often heard cautions from big international organizations saying that cigarette smoking affects the teens. How is this? How specific is this? I thought smoking cigarettes effects people of all ages in the same way. Let me understand this.’’

Indeed, Mackey’s concern is a serious one. For many years, there have been studies done on the health hazards of tobacco smoking and there is one interesting thing to note.

In adults, cigarette smoking is the main risk factor for heart disease and stroke. However, the studies found out that early signs of these diseases could be found in adolescents who smoke.

Well, the thing is; most young people who smoke regularly tend to continue doing so throughout adulthood.

Studies have shown that cigarette smokers have a lower level of lung function than those persons who have never smoked but also smoking reduces the rate of lung growth.

For young people, the effects can be long term as well as short-term. There is a profound impact caused by addiction to nicotine, a substance in tobacco. This is also associated with the risk of other drug use.

Long-term health consequences of youth smoking are reinforced by the fact that smoking hurts young people’s physical fitness in terms of both performance and endurance. This has been noted even among young people trained in competitive running.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has once pointed out that on average, someone who smokes a pack or more of cigarettes each day lives 7 years less than someone who never smoked.

In fact, WHO says, the resting heart rates of young adult smokers are two to three beats per minute faster than nonsmokers.

But also, smoking at an early age increases the risk of lung cancer. For most smoking-related cancers, the risk rises as the individual continues to smoke.

Teenage smokers suffer from shortness of breath almost three times as often as teens that don’t smoke, and produce phlegm more than twice as often as teens who don’t smoke.

Teenage smokers are more likely to have seen a doctor or other health professionals for an emotional or psychological complaint.

Teens who smoke are three times more likely than nonsmokers to use alcohol, eight times more likely to use marijuana, and 22 times more likely to use cocaine. Yet,smoking is associated with a host of other risky behaviors, such as fighting and engaging in unprotected sex.