September 14, 2007

A Familiar Killer

Take a moment and consider how many lives are torn apart by an element that is most likely present in your own environment:

What could this ominous “it” be? Maybe “it” is a lethal dose of radon, or maybe a choking amount of greenhouse gases? Maybe “it” is some deadly strain of virus or microbe or genetic disorder.

Unfortunately, “it” is something much simpler and millions of people voluntarily expose themselves to alarming amounts of “it” on a daily basis.

“It” is tobacco smoke.

Smoking can affect the health of everyone regardless of their age—it is just as deadly for unborn infants as it is for children, adolescents, adults and the elderly. Over a dozen diseases (and several of them are potentially lethal) are caused by smoking, but the effort to lower the number of smokers is slow and difficult. This is because of the sheer addictiveness of the drug nicotine and the cunning promotion of product by cigarette companies.

Are the risks worth the nicotine fix?

Lung Cancer: lung cancer has the lowest survival rate of all cancers. In recent years, lung cancer has killed more people that breast cancer, prostate cancer and colon cancer combined.

Other Cancers: smoking has been linked to cancers of the upper respiratory system as well as lungs. Many smokers suffer miserably from cancers of the mouth, throat (pharynx), voice box (larynx) and esophagus. Research is also making it clear that smoking is associated with leukemia (cancer of the blood), bladder, stomach, kidney and pancreas.

Respiratory Diseases: many of these diseases are clumped together and fall under the header of COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). These diseases include emphysema, chronic bronchitis and asthmatic bronchitis—even if a single disease is not diagnosed, the collection of symptoms associated with smoking included coughing, phlegm, wheezing and difficult or laboured breathing (dyspnea).

Cardiovascular Diseases: these diseases are illness and injuries of the heart, blood vessels of the heart and the system of blood vessel (or veins and arteries) that run throughout the body and brain. Cardiovascular diseases caused by smoking include heart attacks, angina (coronary heart diseases), blockages in the legs (peripheral vascular disease) and strokes (cerebrovascular diseases).

For a way to accommodate smokers and still keep your environment healthy for employees, family members or patrons, visit www.my-air-purifier.com. My Air Purifier offers solutions to both commercial smoke removal and residential smoke removal.

Filed under Air Quality by Dan Buglio