How Does Smoking Affect Your Heart?

Smoking is injurious to health. We have heard this warning quite often. But apart from affecting the lungs and leading to cancer, smoking also has a harmful effect on your heart. Here are the different ways in which lighting a cigarette can darken your heart’s health.

Smoking is said to be the second most common reason for Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs) with hypertension being at number one. Nearly 10% of CVD deaths per year are a result of this unhealthy habit. Consuming tobacco in any form is harmful. Be it in the form of smoking or chewing it. Categorically, smoking destroys your heart in three ways:

Damaging the blood cells

Smoking deteriorates the lining of your heart’s arteries. It tapers or narrows the arteries thus interfering with the blood flow. Apart from this, the rupture in the arteries serves as a magnet by attracting plaque build-up in them. Such a condition naturally increases your risk of high cholesterol which can eventually lead to angina (pain and tightness in the chest) and heart attack or stroke.

High Blood Pressure

The addictive part

of smoking is the temporary energy or adrenaline rush it gives you for a brief moment. This is how the nicotine in cigarettes stimulates the body. But this same sensation is responsible for increasing the blood flow to your heart. This means raised or high blood pressure which naturally burdens the heart by making it pump harder.

Lowers Oxygen Levels

Smoking eventually makes you lethargic. Even simple activities like climbing the stairs, dancing, etc. can make you breathless quickly. This happens because the carbon monoxide present in tobacco reduces the oxygen levels in your bloodstream. Due to this, the heart tends to beat more rapidly and pump harder in order to provide the body with the oxygen it requires. This heavy load too damages the heart and leads to heart attacks and strokes. Moreover, such a condition makes it difficult for you to exercise on a regular basis which can be counter-productive for your weight and diabetes management.

Furthermore, when you smoke, you are not only harming yourself but are also threatening the health of the people around you. As per an international report, about 6, 00,000 people die of CVD, due to exposure to second-hand smoking. So quit smoking not just for yourself but also for the health of your loved ones. The next you get an urge to smoke just remind yourself this simple formula – No Smoke = No Stroke.

Apart from quitting smoking, getting your heart health checked on a regular basis is also necessary. Choose Apollo Diagnostics for a credible and reliable analysis of your heart’s health. The pathological technicians at Apollo Diagnostics will be able to diagnose your condition accurately using their expertise, experience, and state-of-the-art technology. We also provide a free home collection service for your ease and convenience.