One More Reason to Quit
Smoking does more than damage your lungs. It hurts your looks.
As if you need another reason to quit smoking…
You know it causes lung cancer, multiple other cancers, stroke, heart disease, blindness, diabetes, respiratory diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, and sexual dysfunction. You know it’s is a leading cause of death. But did you know smoking harms the way you look? That’s right! Smoking will take away those good looks you work so hard to maintain. The 4,000 toxins found in cigarette smoke wreck havoc on your hair, skin, teeth, and weight. The good news is many of these effects can be reversed once you quit smoking. It may be hard, but you can do it! In fact, there are currently more former smokers in the United States than smokers.
Read on to learn more reasons you should give up the habit for good.
Your Hair Hates Smoke
Smokers can say goodbye to healthy, shiny, beautiful hair. Smoking has been clearly linked to hair loss, premature greying, and brittle hair in both men and women. One study found that men who smoke are twice as likely to lose their hair as nonsmokers. Smoking also inhibits nutrients from reaching hair, making it appear dull and even discolored.
Skin and Smoke Don’t Mix
Only 50 but look like you’re pushing 70? Smoking makes you look years older than you really are, because it speeds the skin’s aging process, causing wrinkles, bags under the eyes, lines around the mouth, and uneven skin tones, all while reducing the skin’s natural glow. These characteristics have been called “smoker’s face” and are caused by several factors. First, nicotine reduces blood flow to the skin, depriving it of oxygen and other nutrients necessary for healthy, supple skin. Second, tobacco smoke dries out the air and skin. And third, cigarette toxins harm collagen, the protein that keeps your skin looking young.
Cuts, bruises, and other wounds on your skin take longer to heal and often leave more noticeable scars when you smoke. The inability for smokers to heal leads some plastic surgeons to refuse certain procedures on smokers due to this fact.
The deadly habit also drastically increases your risk of developing psoriasis, an autoimmune inflammatory skin condition that causes thick, scaly areas on the skin that can be painful and unattractive.
Want more skin issues? Smokers are more prone to becoming infected with the human papilloma virus that causes warts on the body—especially on the genitals. And people who smoke are three times more likely to get squamous cell skin cancer, more prone to develop stretch marks after weight gain, and female smokers are known to have sagging breasts.
Nicotine Teeth
Your smile is often the first thing someone notices about you, so smokers often feel obliged to smile with their mouths closed. Yellow, discolored teeth; swollen, inflamed gums; bad breath; and tooth loss are all common among smokers. If you hate the dentist, you’d do well to quit smoking to avoid a host of painful and costly dental problems.
Smoking and Your Weight
Though recent research shows the opposite to be true, smoking may suppress the appetite and increases metabolism. This is why many smokers gain a few pounds when they put down cigarettes for good. But keep in mind this weight gain is better for your health than continuing to smoke.
Smokers who are overweight tend to store fat around their midsection, increasing their waist-to-hip ratio. The more cigarettes you smoke, the greater this ratio. Excess weight around your waist puts you at an increased risk for diabetes, stroke, metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, cancers, and heart disease.
“LET US HELP YOU LOOK AND FEEL YOUR BEST TODAY”
Allan Alguire