Effects
Facts
Numbers
Quitting
Facts
100
True or False? Smoking makes people sick, but only after years of use.
False. While the longer you smoke, the higher your risk of diseases becomes, smoking also causes damage immediately. The toxins in smoke prevent your body from healing itself – so your immune system is in constant stress trying to repair the damage done to the body each time you inhale. Young people who smoke suffer from shortness of breath and develop smoker’s cough, making it difficult to be active.
100
True or False? Smoking is second only to the sun as a cause of skin damage such as wrinkles and age spots.
True. Cigarette smoke contains carbon monoxide which decreases the amount of oxygen your blood can carry to tissues – including your skin. This leads to wrinkles and graying of the skin, especially around the mouth.
100
True or False? A typical U.S. smoker spends over $2,000 a year on cigarettes.
True. The average pack-a-day smoker pays $6 per pack adding up to $2,190 per year. That’s a lot of money to pay to hurt yourself.
100
True or False. There is no point in quitting smoking because the damage is irreversible.
False. Quitting is always beneficial, no matter what age! When a person quits smoking, they give their body a break from the influx of toxins to heal itself. Within one year, a smoker significantly reduces their chances of heart attack and within 2-5 years, their risk of stroke can be reduced to that of a nonsmoker. In 10 years, the risk of lung cancer is halved.
100
How many people die from smoking and second hand smoke in one year?
480,000 people
200
Approximately 1 out of every __ deaths in the U.S. is attributable to smoking. a) 5 b) 10 c) 20 d) 100
5 Any level of exposure to tobacco smoke is unhealthy. There are approximately 443,000 deaths attributed to tobacco use each year in the United States, almost 50,000 of those due to secondhand smoke exposure. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, if no one smoked, 1 out of every 3 cancer deaths in the United States would not happen.
200
True or False? “Lite” cigarettes, bidis and chewing tobacco are a safer alternative to regular cigarettes.
False. Research has shown that these alternatives to tobacco are just as addictive and no less dangerous than than regular cigarettes. For example, bidis produces three times the amount of carbon monoxide and nicotine and more than five times the amount of tar. The notion of a “safer” cigarette is just a marketing ploy by tobacco companies to sell more of their product.
200
80% of smokers started before what age? a) 18 b) 30 c) 12 d) 22
18. The majority of people start smoking as adolescents – in fact, 80% of smokers started before the age of 18
200
What happens within 1 year after quitting?
Your added risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker's.
200
Every ___ percent increase in the price of cigarettes reduces youth consumption by ___ percent. a) 10/7 b) 20/10 c) 5/10 d) 10/10
10/7
300
Smoking increases the risk of which of the following types of cancer? a) Lung, mouth, nose, throat, larynx, esophagus b) Bladder, pancreas, kidney, stomach c) Cervix, uterus, bone marrow, blood d) All of the above
All of the above. Tobacco smoke is directly linked to nearly one-third of all cancer deaths every year – including 85% of all lung cancers. The chemicals in tobacco smoke reach every organ in the body, mutating cells, damaging DNA, and straining the immune system, all of which encourage cancer to grow.
300
Cigarette smoke contains a toxic mix of over _____ chemicals, about _____ of which can cause cancer. a) 100/12 b) 1,000/100 c) 3,000/30 d) 7,000/70
7,000/70. Tobacco smoke contains a mix of over 7,000 chemicals! Thousands of which are toxic and approximately 70 that are known to cause cancer. New reports show the damage caused by chemicals in tobacco smoke doesn’t stop at your lungs. Chemicals quickly move from your lungs to your bloodstream, where they travel through the arteries into tissues, causing damage to every organ in your body.
300
How many chemicals are found in cigarettes?
over 700 chemicals
300
When do most smokers who quit go back to smoking?
Most smokers who return to smoking do so within the first three months.
300
Advertising for tobacco products historically has been more prevalent in what community.
African American. An analysis of available studies to date in 2007, found that the odds that any given billboard/outdoor signage advertisement was smoking-related were 70 percent higher in predominantly African-American neighborhoods than in predominantly white neighborhoods, and there were 2.6 times as many tobacco advertisements per person in African-American areas.
400
Smoking or breathing secondhand smoke can lead to which of the following? a) Miscarriages, premature births or low-weight births, if pregnant b) SIDS or "crib death" incidents c) Asthma d) Upper respiratory and ear infections e) All of the above
All of the above. Tobacco smoke is especially harmful to developing fetuses, infants and small children. Researchers have found that smoking might actually damage the DNA in men’s sperm, decreasing fertility and causing birth defects and/or miscarriage.
400
True or False? Smoking helps you relax.
False. Smoking actually triggers stress. While smokers may feel a sense of relief when they smoke, that is only because they are addicted to the nicotine in tobacco; as the nicotine from one cigarette wears off, they start to crave another and become nervous and tense. Nicotine causes your heart rate and blood pressure to increase. Doesn’t sound very relaxing.
400
In 2007, nearly two-thirds (60.9%) of students who ever smoked cigarettes daily tried to quit smoking cigarettes; however, among those who tried to quit, only ___ were successful. a) 4% b) 12% c) 22% d) 44%
12%. Even though many smokers would like to quit, without help, quitting tobacco is extremely difficult. It’s important to support friends and family in their efforts to quit by encouraging them and giving them information about where they can get help quitting.
400
What happens 10 years after quitting?
Your risk of dying from lung cancer is about half that of a smoker's. Your risk of getting bladder cancer is half that of a smoker's. Your risk of getting cervical cancer or cancer of the larynx, kidney or pancreas decreases.
400
After quitting, is it bad to only smoke "once in a while."
The most important thing any smoker can do to improve his or her health is to quit smoking completely. That means not smoking at all, not even "once in a while" or "just when I'm out with my friends." It may take a few tries, but you can stop using tobacco for good.
500
How many chemicals in cigarettes are known to cause cancer?
69 are known to cause cancer and others are known to be poisonous.
500
True or False? Nicotine is as addictive as cocaine.
True. Scientists have found that each time you inhale a cigarette, nicotine races to your heart and brain, altering the chemical balance in your brain and making you crave more nicotine. Cigarette companies have long known the addictive properties and purposefully design cigarettes that contain greater amounts of nicotine with additives that help to deliver it quicker than ever before. What does this mean? People become hooked faster than ever!
500
In 2006, tobacco companies spent approximately ____ per day on marketing in the U.S. a) $300,000 b) $3 million c) $14 million d) $34 million
$34 million – PER DAY. For every smoker that dies, tobacco companies try to hook a new one. They produce small flavored cigars and cigarillos to appeal to young people because, knowing that adolescent brains are more susceptible to nicotine, they want to hook you while you’re young. Profit is the bottom line.
500
What are the Symptoms of Nicotine Withdrawal?
Feeling down or sad Having trouble sleeping Feeling irritable‚ on edge‚ grouchy Having trouble thinking clearly and concentrating Feeling restless and jumpy Slower heart rate Feeling more hungry or gaining weight
500
What ways are effective for quitting?
Smoking is very addictive and quitting "cold turkey" generally isn't effective. The majority of smokers need help quitting, which means getting support from your friends and family, signing up for a program and taking a medication that can help you quit. Also, think about your previous quit attempts and use those to plan your next quit. If you keep trying and keep learning from your experiences, you will be able to quit for good!
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