***All of the information below is an excerpt from cancer.gov.  please click here for the original article.

Health problems caused by smoking

Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body and diminishes a person's overall health.  Smoking is a leading cause of cancer and of death from cancer.  It causes cancers of the lung, esophagus, larynx(void box), mouth, throat, kidney, bladder, pancreas, stomach, and cervix, as well as acute myeloid leukemia.

Smoking also causes heart disease, stroke, lung disease (chronic bronchitis and emphysema), hip fractures, and cataracts.  Smokers are at higher risk of developing pneumonia and other airway infections.

A pregnant smoker is at higher risk of having her baby born too early and with an abnormally low weight.  A woman who smokes during or after pregnancy increases her infant's risk of death from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

Millions of Americans have health problems caused by smoking.  Cigarette smoking and exposure to tobacco smoke cause an estimated average of 438,000 premature deaths each year in the United States.  Of these premature deaths, about 40% are from cancer, 35% are from heat disease and stroke, and 25% are from lung disease.  Smoking is the leading cause of premature, preventable death in this country.

Regardless of their age, smokers can substantially reduce their risk of disease, including cancer, by quitting.

Immediate benefits of quitting smoking

The immediate health benefits of quitting smoking are substantial. Heart rate and blood pressure, which were abnormally high while smoking, begin to return to normal. Whithin a few hours, the level of CO in the blood begins to decline. (CO reduces the blood's ability to carry oxygen.) Within a few weeks, people who quit smoking have improved circulation, don't produce as much phlegm, and don't cough or wheeze as often. Within several months of quitting, people can expect significant improvements in lung function.

The long-term benefits of quitting smoking

Quitting smoking reduces the risk of cancer and other diseases, such as heart disease and lung disease, caused by smoking. People who quit smoking, regadless of their age, are less likely than those who continue to smoke to die from smoking-related illness. Studies have shown that quitting at about age 30 reduces the chance of dying from smoking-related diseases by more thant 90%. People who quit at about age 50 reduce their risk of dying prematurely by 50% compared with those who continue to smoke. Even people who quit at about age 60 or older live longer than those who continue to smoke.

Quitting smoking lowers the risk of cancer

Quitting smoking substantially reduces the risk of developing and dying from cancer, and this benefit increases the longer a person remains smoke free. However, even after many years of not smoking, the risk of lung cancer in former smokers remains higher than in people who have never smoked.

The risk of premature death and the chance of developing cancer due to cigarettes depend on the number of years of smoking, the number of cigarettes smoked per day, the age at which smoking began, and the presence or absence of illness at the time of quitting.  For people who have already developed cancer, quitting smoking reduces the risk of developing a second caner.

                ***All of the above information is an excerpt from cancer.gov.  please click here for the original article.

Dr. Sheng can help stop smoking

With all of his experiences in acupuncture, Dr. Sheng can help you stop smoking. Call our office today to make appoinment to give yourself a healthier body and a better quality of life.