Which symptoms is a short term effect of tobacco use? – Immediately after exposure to nicotine, there is a “kick” caused in part by the drug’s stimulation of the adrenal glands and resulting discharge of epinephrine (adrenaline). This rush of adrenaline stimulates the body and causes an increase in blood pressure, respiration, and heart rate.
When tobacco is smoked, nicotine rapidly reaches peak levels in the bloodstream and enters the brain. A typical smoker will take 10 puffs on a cigarette over the roughly 5 minutes that the cigarette is lit. Thus, a person who smokes about 1 pack (20 cigarettes) daily gets 200 “hits” of nicotine to the brain each day.
Smoking leads to disease and disability and harms nearly every organ of the body.
Cigarette smoke contains nearly 7,000 chemical substances, including 69 carcinogens. Inhaled smoke circulates in the human body and reaches nearly every organ, negatively impacting smokers’ health and well-being. The smoke also has an impact on the health of nonsmokers who are exposed to it.
Cigars and cigarillos, as well as the usage of a water pipe, are not safer alternatives to cigarettes because they pose significant health hazards.
Electronic cigarettes are an exception. Their long-term health implications are unknown for both users and others who are regularly exposed to the vapours (aerosols). However, it appears that electronic cigarettes pose considerable health hazards as well. There are numerous types of electronic cigarettes, and their production in Canada is not yet regulated.
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Tobacco smoking is linked to cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung disease, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Smoking also raises the risk of TB, some eye illnesses, and immune system problems such as rheumatoid arthritis.
The short-term effects of tobacco include:
- Bad breath
- Fatigue and a decrease in energy
- Reduction in the senses of taste and smell
- Coughing
- Nausea
- Shortness of breath
Tobacco users are also at risk of experiencing several health problems, including:
- Problems affecting the heart and blood vessels
- Respiratory or lung problems, such as asthma or excessive coughing
- Certain types of cancers, including lung cancer
- Fertility problems
- In women: menstrual problems
- In men: erectile problems
When assessing the potential effects of enacting a new tobacco policy, such as raising the minimum legal age of tobacco product access (MLA), keep in mind that this long list of well-established consequences of cigarette smoking will continue to grow as scientific knowledge advances and more definitive evidence concerning additional health outcomes is generated. As a result, characterizing the possible impact of a policy change that reduces cigarette smoke exposure is a conservative approximation of the true public health impact.
