Smoking has many negative effects on a persons' body. Some of these include heart disease, wrinkling of the skin, skin cancer, tooth decay, osteoporosis, pulmonary emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and so much more. Read on to find out more about the harmful effects smoking has on an individuals body...

Heart Disease
Smoking-related heart disease kills more than 600,000 people in the U.S. each year. Smoking increases the heart rate, raises blood pressure, and increases the risk of hypertension and clogged arteries.
Wrinkling of the Skin
Smoking causes premature aging of the skin by decreasing the amount of protein that the skin receives, reducing the amount of vitamin A in the skin, and restricting blood flow. A peron who smokes will have extra dry skin, marked with tiny lines (wrinkles) around the eyes and lips. One study showed that the skin of a person who smoked was aged of that of a person who was 20 years older.
Tooth Decay
Smoking gets in the way of the mouth's natural processes. This creates excess plaque, yellow teeth and contributes to tooth decay. Smokers are 1.5 times more likely to lose their teeth.

Pulmonary Emphysema
Emphysema is a chronic lung disease in which the air sacs are destroyed, collapsed, or over-inflated. Damage to these air sacs is irreversibel and results in permanent 'holes' in the tissue of the lungs. Emphysema develops gradually and may include symptoms of a cough, sleep and heart problems, weight loss, depression, and other things.

Osteoporosis
Carbon monoxide, which is the main poisonous gas in cigarette smoke, latches onto blood more heavily than oxygen. This causes a reduction in the amount of oxygen traveling in the blood. As a result, a smokers' bone will be much more dense, facture more easily, and take longer to heal. Those who smoke more than 24 cigarettes a day will be more open to back pressure than those who don't smoke.

Stomach Ulcers
Smoking reduces the resistance of bacteria that causes stomach ulcers. It also affects the stomach's ability to diminish acid after a meal, leaving the acid to eat away at the lining of the stomach. Ulcers are harder to treat and more likely to occur.

Lung Cancer
More than 150,000 people die in the U.S. each year because of smoking-related cancer. Smoking can cause cancer of the lungs, oral cavity, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and other areas of the human body.
Chronic Bronchitis
Chronic bronchitis is an irritation of the airways in the lungs. Symptoms include a cough that produces mucus, trouble breathing and a feeling of tightness in your chest. Cigarette smoking is the main cause of chronic bronchitis. A doctor may prescribe medicine to treat this disease but antibiotics don't help at all. Antibiotics may be needed if you get a lung infection along with the disease.