Lung Cancer
Lung cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the lung. Cancer develops when normal cells become abnormal, and grow out of control. People often wonder, “what causes lung cancer?” Scientific research says that smoking is the major cause of lung cancer. A small amount of patients who have the disease have never smoked. That is because you can also get lung cancer if your exposed to asbestos for a long period of time. Also miners who work with radio active machines have also been at risk to get the disease.
On an average, men and women between the ages of fifty and seventy who have smoked most of their lives are usually the ones to get lung cancer. It is also the number 1 cause of cancer deaths. There are 177,000 new cases of lung cancer in 1996. There have already been an estimated 158,700 deaths this year. More than 350,000 Americans die of lung cancer each year. World wide, 5 million people die of lung cancer each year. Since 1987, more women have died each year from lung cancer than any other cancer including breast cancer.
Emphesyma and Bronchitis
Lung tissue is very flexible and delicate. It is important for oxygen to pass through the bloodstream. When emphysema occurs the lung loses its elasticity like a rubber band that won’t snap back. The two diseases (emphysema and chronic bronchitis) have been lumped together under the name Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. People who begin suffering from many of the chest problems that occur from these diseases wonder which of the two diseases they have. The fact is that the chances are good that they may have both to some degree.
Most people start smoking in their early teens. After a few years they may notice that their breathing is becoming slower and weaker. They may also notice they get a lot more colds than people who don’t smoke. The reason is that the cold goes right into the chest, and lingers there. Then they are left with a bad cough that won’t go away. Some call it a “smokers cough”, others may say a “cigarette cough”.
A person suffering from emphesema and/or chronic bronchitis begins to feel tired more often. Climbing up stairs seems to feel like a big task. Any type of fast movement such as: cooking, cleaning, walking, etc. causes breathlessness, and usually follows with severe chest pains. When these diseases progress, severe infections such as pneumonia occur. At this time they become confused, and have bad headaches. This is when therapy or even hospitalization is necessary. Some people take well to the treatments, which means they have a chance if they stop smoking.
Smoking and Heart Disease
Cigarette smoking is the number one cause associated with heart attacks in the United States. The connection between cigarettes and heart disease (also cancer) is so great, that the Surgeon General of the United States instructed that there has to be a warning against the dangers of smoking printed on every package of cigarettes.
Cigarette smoking speeds the development of heart disease and lessens the capacity of blood flow. This is what triggers a heart attack. Many studies have shown that smoking cigarettes is very dangerous for people that have already had a heart attack or if they are prone to. Cigarettes cause more heart disease and lung cancer than other forms of tobacco, because cigarettes are inhaled much more often.
It is very important for someone who has inherited a tendancy to have high blood pressure to control their risks by changing habits and making life-style adjustments. Smoking cigarettes is a major cause of heart attacks and heart disease deaths. If a person wants to lessen their chances of having a heart attack or getting heart disease, the answer is to never start smoking.
Time Line of Historical Events
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1492 Columbus reaches the West Indies finds Native Americans smoking tobacco.
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1492 Rodrigo de Jerez becomes the first European to smoke tobacco. He became a habitual tobacco smoker.
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1548 Portugese cultivate tobacco in Brazil for European consumption.
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1564 Sir John Hawkins introduces pipe smoking to English nobles.
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1612 John Rolfe cultivates South American Nicotiana tobaccum in North America at the English colony Jamestown.
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1676 Heavy taxes put on tobacco by Virginia colony Governor Berkeley lead to Bacon’s Rebellion, a foretaste for the American Revolution.
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1865 Immagrants brought to Southeastern United States to roll 70 cigarettes.
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1881 James Albert Bonsack revolutionizes tobacco industry with the invention of a rolling machine. The machine rolled 120,000 cigarettes per day.
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1911 The United States Supreme Court rules the American Tobacco Company a monopoly in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
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1921 Cigarette becomes the leading form of tobacco comsumption.
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1953 Epidemiological studies released indicated that smoking killed people by causing cancers and cardiovascular diseases.
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1959 Filtered cigarettes leads consumption of all tobacco products.
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1965 Warning labels were mandated on all cigarette boxes by congress.
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1994 Chief Executive Officers in American tobacco industry deny nicotine is an addictive substance.
