Since columbus introduced europe to tobacco, there are more ways to use this potion: cigarettes, hookah, nicotine patches and so on. Among those who like to “raise” there has long been a debate about which of these methods is less harmful to health. And scientists do not cease to study the effect of smoking on the human body.
Law is not written. According to the world health organization, more than 7 million people die every year due to tobacco use.
In the summer of 2018, the verkhovna rada registered a bill on the introduction of an excise tax on electronic cigarettes. After that, a squall of criticism fell on the people’s deputies. They were accused of thus equating the “less harmful” e-cigarettes to ordinary ones.
After that, the ministry of health took up the hookah, announcing the start of the information campaign about its harm. So is there any difference in the harm of all these types of smoking?
How determined? The harm of nicotine and tobacco products is determined by the risk distribution scale (risk continuum). According to this scale, the most harmful to health is traditional smoking. At the other end of the scale are nicotine gum and a plaster. Vape (e-cigarettes) and hookah are somewhere in the middle.
The most harmful to health is not so much nicotine as the combustion products – resins, toxins and other toxic substances.
Cigarettes. Regular cigarettes are the most dangerous. Their smoke contains more than 7 thousand of harmful substances. More than fifty different carcinogens enter the blood through the lungs, destroying the brain of nitrosamines, heavy metals like lead and polonium. In the year the lungs of a heavy smoker process about 80 liters of tobacco tar containing this whole cocktail. Not all is excreted from the body. What settles in the lungs leads to cancer, obstructive pulmonary disease, cardiovascular diseases and infertility.
Hookah. The statement that hookah is not harmful is a myth. Hookah smokers suffer from the same bouquet of diseases as supporters of cigarettes.
In defense of the hookah, you can often hear that the smoke in it is filtered by water. But given the fact that with this method of smoking a person inhales a lot more smoke, the concentration of harmful substances does not matter.
According to the ministry of health of ukraine, only half of the adult population of the country really assesses the risks associated with hookah smoking. About 2% of adults constantly smoke hookah, and among non-smoking young people from 14 to 34 years old, they tried a hookah every second.
Wap. Electronic cigarettes have recently appeared as a “harmless” alternative to cigarettes and hookahs. They use cartridges filled with liquid with nicotine, flavors and other chemicals. It was believed that the vapor of electronic cigarettes does not contain harmful substances and does not cause any diseases, since there are no burning products in it. In fact, it turned out that a person gets an even larger portion of nicotine than usual.
According to recent studies, hot vapor from an e-cigarette destroys lung cells, and there is evidence that these injuries can be inherited. It was found that teenagers vapers often become active smokers of regular cigarettes within a year after they have tried electronic cigarettes.
All harmful. The truth is that smoking kills. And no matter what method is used for this or how high-tech it is. The consequences are the same: sickness and death.