Smoking industry: stats, facts & side effects for 2024
Learn all you need to know about smoking in our comprehensive guide. Discover the latest facts, statistics, and potential side effects.
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Not sure if you’re ready to quit smoking? Worried about finding it difficult?
Start quizSmoking facts to understand the dangers of smoking
An overview of general smoking facts and statistics1-3
A few quick facts
- Tobacco smoke contains more than 4,000 chemical compounds, which are present either as gases or as tiny particles
- More people die due to smoking related illnesses then all the deaths due to the following combined:
- HIV
- car accidents
- murder
- suicide
- alcohol use
- drug abuse
- 1 billion adults currently smoking (942 million men and 175 million women)
- 721 million adults were smoking in 1980
- US$200 billion annual spend on tobacco
- 6.5 trillion cigarettes sold each year (18 Billion per day)
- Smoking is responsible for 1 in 10 adult deaths worldwide
- Half of the world’s 650 million smokers will die as a result of their habit
- A 20 a day smoker would smoke 7,300 cigarettes per year. A life-long smoking habit of 40 years, would result in 292,000 cigarettes being smoked. This would total 14 miles of cigarettes if laid end to end
- A 20 a day smoker inhales approximately 3 million lung-fulls of smoke in their shortened lifetime
Smoking prevalence in a few countries around the world 2022
Top 12 countries by cigarettes smoked per capita p.a
An overview of USA smoking facts and statistics
A few quick facts
- Smoking causes more than 490,000 deaths each year which is nearly one in five deaths
- Smoking causes more deaths each year than the deaths due to the following combined:
- HIV
- illegal drug use
- alcohol use
- motor vehicle injuries
- firearm related incidents
- Smoking has killed 10 times more US citizens than died in all the wars fought by the USA
- More than 250,000 children (10-4 years old) use tobacco each day
An overview of UK smoking facts and statistics
A few quick facts
- Every day, in the UK about 300 children start smoking – equivalent to one elementary school EVERY day
- 409,000 UK patients with smoking-related illnesses are admitted to hospital each year
- In the UK every year around 76,000 smokers die as a result of their smoking – that’s more than 200 a day – the equivalent to a plane crashing every other day and killing all its passengers
- In England last year one in two deaths of smokers was due to smoking related diseases
- Smoking costs £30 BILLION a year to the economy
- In 2022-23 the UK Govt earned £10 BILLION in revenue from tobacco tax (including VAT)
- Smoking kills around five times more people in the UK than all the following added together:
- road traffic accidents
- other accidents
- poisoning and overdose
- alcoholic liver disease
- murder and manslaughter
- suicide
- HIV infection
What’s holding you back?
Not sure if you really want to quit smoking?
Want to quit, but concerned that you’ll find it tough?
Worried that you’ll be deprived for the rest of your life without cigarettes?
We know that taking the first step can be difficult, but we’re here to answer your questions in complete confidence – with no pressure and no judgment.
Start the free quizWhat are the side effects & risks of smoking cigarettes
Cigarettes contain nicotine and over 4,000 chemicals as well as releasing harmful gases such as carbon monoxide. These can lead to the following risks and issues4-10:
-
Blood circulation diseases
Smoking results in blood vessels constricting and narrowing limiting the blood that flows to your organs as well as thickening of the blood.
Short term
- Increased tendency to clot
- Increased blood pressure and heart rate
- Thins arteries reducing oxygen circulation
Long term
- Thins arteries reducing oxygen circulation
- Atherosclerosis (plaque forms on the artery wall)
- Increase in size of aorta
- Increased risk of myeloid leukaemia (blood cancer)
-
Brain diseases
Smoking affects the efficiency of the limbic and paralimbic areas of the brain. These regions are responsible for attention, memory and learning.
Short term
- Dizziness
- Poor sleeping
Long term
- Bad dreams and nightmares
- Headaches
- Doubles the risk of stroke
- Increased risk of a brain aneurysm
-
Heart diseases
Smoking results in blood vessels constricting and narrowing limiting the blood that flows to the heart as well as thickening of the blood.
Short term
- Chest pain
- Uneven heartbeats
Long term
- Doubles the risk of heart attack
- Constriction of the coronary artery
- Increases the risk of heart disease
- Damages blood vessels
- Damages arteries supplying blood to your brain
-
Stomach disease
Nicotine interacts with all parts of the digestive system leading to many harmful effects.
Short term
- Hiccups or belching
- Dry mouth
- Nausea
Long term
- May lead to reduced appetite
- Diarrhoea
- Constipation
- Heartburn
- Ulceration
- Increased risk of stomach cancer
- One and a half times more likely to get kidney cancer
-
Reproduction
Smoking damages all parts of the reproductive system in both men and women including the genetic material of sperm cells.
Short term
- Sperm and semen quality suffer
- Egg cells damage
- Affects the menstrual cycle making it more irregular
Long term
- Decrease the sperm count
- Reduction in the volume of sperm
- Changes to cervical mucus (affects how sperm reaches the egg)
- Problems with fallopian tubes
- Increased risk of cervical cancer
- Infertility in both men and women
- Pregnancy complications
-
Lung disease
The smoke inhaled into the lungs together with the chemicals and nicotine all have damaging effects on the lungs.
Short term
- Coughs
- Colds
- Wheezing
- Asthma
- Pneumonia
Long term
- Emphysema
- Lung cancer
-
Mouth & throat
The smoke inhaled into the mouth together with the chemicals and nicotine all have damaging effects on the mouth and throat.
Short term
- Bad breath
- Stained teeth
- Throat or mouth soreness
- Watery eyes or mouth
- Coughing
- Sneezing
Long term
- Gum disease
- Changes in taste
- Increased risk of tongue cancer
- Increased risk of throat cancer
- Increased risk of voice box cancer
- Increased risk of oesophagus cancer
-
Skin disease
The chemicals and nicotine over time have an accumulatively negative effect on the skin.
Short term
- Looks gray and dull
Long term
- Delayed wound healing
- Increased infections
- Causes cellulite
- Ages more quickly
- Three times more likely to get wrinkles
-
Bones disease
The chemicals and nicotine in smoking affect the metabolism of hormones, vitamin D levels, calcium absorption, blood circulation and thus significantly affects bone formation and healing.
Short term
- Weakens bones
Long term
- Increased risk of bones becoming weak and brittle
- Osteoporosis
-
Other diseases
Taking nicotine has harmful effects on other parts of the body not least the immune system.
Short term
- Suppression of the immune system
Long term
- Increased risk of pancreatic cancer
- Increased risk of breast cancer
- Increased risk of colon and rectum cancer
- Increased risk of developing cataracts
- Increased risk of liver cancer
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