Does cigarette smoking affect the heart?
Yes. Smoking cigarettes increases the risk of heart disease, which is America’s number one killer. Almost 180,000 Americans die each year from cardiovascular disease caused by smoking. Smoking, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, and lack of exercise are all risk factors for heart disease, but smoking alone doubles the risk of heart disease. Among those who have previously had a heart attack, smokers are more likely than non-smokers to have another. 9. How does smoking affect pregnant women and their babies? Pregnant women who smoke endanger the health and lives of their unborn babies. Babies of smoking women average 6 ounces less at birth than babies of nonsmoking women. When a pregnant woman smokes, she really is smoking for two because the nicotine, carbon monoxide, and other dangerous chemicals in smoke enter her bloodstream and pass directly into the baby’s body. Statistics show a direct relation between smoking during pregnancy and spontaneous abortions, stillbirths, dea
