How Tobacco Causes Cancer
Tobacco, Tabucum nicotiana, is a plant grown for purposes of use of its leaves. Tabacum Nicotia is characterized by simple oval leaves and a hairy stem. Tobacco plant grows to about a height of 5ft average. Tobacco dried leaves are cured and used in cigarette making, and Its leaves are also used as a stimulant. Worldwide, oral cancers, one of the major cancers. A country like India is one of the affected countries in the world with the using tobacco, which leads to cancer infections. Smoking in India is also smoked in different ways; clay pipe, reverse smoking, chutta, and the common one being bidi.
Studies have shown that where tobacco is used in the smokeless form, oral cancer cases tend to be high compared to the most common type of using tobacco which through smoking. This studies reflects that, the cases of oral cancer are on the rise even nearing to surpass lung cancer. In USA, tobacco is smoke used through snuffing which is an oral means. Use of tobacco has vast effects that comes with prolonged usage, addiction is caused due to tobacco use, tobacco causes cancer and also leads to destruction of cells in the body which leads to malfunctioning of the body organs.
This paper focuses on how tobacco and its constituents such as nicotine are used by different populations from different parts of the world and tobacco causes cancer and other effects it has on users around the globe.
(1)In the year 1980, 6.35 million cases of cancer worldwide. 49% were recorded in developed countries, and 51% in third world countries.Majority of death cases reported in the US were said to have been caused by lung cancer. 90% being men and 79 % being women who were ciggarete smokers. The use of tobacco in the south East Asia is has seen a rapid increase , traditional methods of smoking have been put in place by users, and this include; dhunti, pipe,keeyos,hookah and chuttah. Tobacco is also chewed in the South of Asia, it is kept in the mouth and sucked over the teeth and gums. Several constituents of tobacco have been identified to be toxic to human body and especially causes damage to body organs and cells.
As highlited earlier, tobacco can be consumed in different forms, and these forms are; cigarette smoking,bidi smoking, misellanious smoking habits.
Cigarette smoking
Smorking of cigarette is considered as one of the major causative means of oral cancer.the risk of cigarette smorking is estimated to have rapidly shoot over the years. The risk estimated in the US had grown recently leading death from oral/pharyngeal cancer among men to 74% and that of women to about 27% .The effects of smorking ciggarete . it is highlighted that the people tobacco users or rather ciggarerete smokers are likely to die eventually or be affected by a disease that is associated with smorking of cigarette. Non smokers also have been subjected to this risks of contracting diseases aassociated with smorking , the estimates show that deaths among people exposed to active smorkers had risen from the previous numbers.
The rate of lung cancer mortality in the US had declined in the past years in the age groups of people under 45 years, the older age cases seemed to increase but a slower rate. On the other hand blacks did not undergo these trends but experienced an increase in lung cancer mortality rates. It has to come to attention that the duration of smoking leads to a higher risk in increase histologic kinds of lung cancer.adenocarcinoma,squamous cell carcinoma,small cell carcinoma, and large cell carcinoma are among common types of cancer experienced in world.Ciggarete smorking has also been proved to cause carcinomas in the ureter, renal pelvis, and the of the bladder. The main determinants of risks associated with smorking are, the number of pieces of cigarettes one smokes and the duration that one spends on smorking.
Bidii, reverse smoking, and miscellaneous smoking habits.
Bidii smorking is made from a stick of dried tobacco leaves which are rolled into a gist manner. Bidii smorking is one of the major causes of oral cancer especially in sub-I dian continent. Several experiments have shown that Bidii smorking contains toxic constituents which are mutagenic and are considered carcinogenic. Bidii constitutes of other toxic substances amounting from, ammonia, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons and nicotine. The above mentioned are among the main causative of cancer in human beings. Chuttah another form of reverse smoking is made from a cylindrical pipe and it is characterized to cause oral cancer.
Miscellaneous smoking habits also is among main contributiors of oral cancer. There are different types of miscellaneous forms of smoking. Chewing of tobacco, snuffing dipping, tea bags made of tobacco are among the many forms of miscellaneous forms of smoking. Chewing of Betel quid is a co mmon hsbit among Asia communities, a population estimated of about 200 million people in South East Asia have a habit of chewing tobacco. users of Betel quid are exposed to arecioline- derived nitrosamines,propionaldehyde and priopiontrile these substances leads to oral cancer among the Betel quid users.
Tobacco consumption or exposure to second hand smoke causes instant damages to the tobacco users and these damages can lead to serious illness and even cause death to tobacco users. Tobacco is considered to have around 7,000 compounds. These chemicals and compounds causes harm to the lining of lungs and causes long term problems of ability of lungs to exchange gases properly. This leads to chronic pulmonary diseases and emphysema. Compounds present in tobacco causes swelling and harms the cells. White blood cells are responsible for protecting one from infections, injuries, and cancers ,but as one continues to smoke more oftenly the body produces high number of white blood cells to fights these chemicals from smoking of cancer.
The toxins in tobacco harms the DNA of a tobacco user greatly. This is followed by weaking of the body and thus leads to a weak immunity in the body this leads to a low ability of the body to fight cancer. Therefore if one is constantly exposed to tobacco smoke or use it will prove difficult to contain the growth of tumours and development of cancer in the users body.
Chemicals in tobacco which causes cancer leads to abnormal growth of cells in the bodies of living organisms especially human beings. These abnormalities are experienced in cell which makes them inflamate to abnormal sizes , when this happens the affected cells are not able to perfom their functions well in the body. This will great affect nomal functioning of the body and its organs since we all know that the cell is the basic unit of life in its normal state.
PROGGRESS MADE TO STOP CANCER CAUSED BY TOBACCO
Different authourities around the globe have put different measures to curb this use of tobacco this is becvause the dangers associated with it have become more dangerous and leading to many deaths day in day out. Policies to reduce this smoking habits have been put in place but the biggest challenge has always been if the tobacco users are following the policies in place to help in reduction of danger posed by this health problem. By introducing sensitization programs on the dangers of smoking tobacco the authorities have spear headed and funded programs to educate and warn on effects of smoking not only to active users but also to passive smoker.
Through enacting policies companies that deal with tobacco products are required to put warning,caution and inidicate with labels on the dangers of using cigarettes on packets of their products. This has greatly helped in informing many people about the dangers caused by heavy smoking or exposure to tobacco. Different governments have imposed heavy taxes on tobacco products to help in reducing the number of cigarettes consumed by active users this will help in controlling and fight against the diseases like cancer which are caused by smoking of tobacco.
Some authorities have come up with different ways of curbing tobacco smoking by restricting areas where one can smoke. By setting up specific areas where tobacco users can use to do their smoking has greatly helped to reduce the number of people who come into contact with tobacco smoke through passive smoking, thus help in the decrease in disease contraction rate.
In summary, the authorities need to step up and fund the measures mentioned above and enforce them to control the use of tobacco since tobacco is proving to be causing great damages to the society through diseases like cancers it causes.