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Tobacco Notes
Tobacco

A plant whose leaves can
be dried and mixed with
chemicals to make
products such as
cigarettes, smokeless
tobacco, and cigars.
Tobacco plants >
Nicotine

A highly addictive
drug that is naturally
occurring in the
tobacco plant
Additives
The chemicals that help tobacco stay
moist, burn longer, and taste better.
Examples – ammonia & acetone
Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS)
The mixture of exhaled smoke and smoke
from the ends of burning cigarettes
Carbon Monoxide

A gas in cigarette
smoke that makes it
hard for the body to
get oxygen
Tar


A gooey chemical
found in tobacco
smoke
can coat the airways
and that can cause
cancer
Chronic Bronchitis


A disease in which
the lining of the
airways becomes
very swollen and
irritated.
This irritation makes a
person produce large
amounts of mucus
and cough a lot.
Emphysema


A disease in which
the tiny air sacs and
walls of the lungs are
permanently
destroyed.
Many people with
emphysema require
the use of oxygen
tanks to help them
breathe.
Cardiovascular Diseases
Diseases of the circulatory system.

Heart attack 

When arteries that supply blood to the heart become
blocked
Stroke –

When arteries that supply blood to the brain become
blocked



May cause brain damage - may be temporary or permanent
May cause speech problems
May cause paralysis – especially on one side of the body
Cancer
A disease in
which cells
grow
uncontrollably
and invade
and destroy
healthy tissue

Lung cancer causes
more deaths than
any other cancer!
Carcinogen

Any chemical or
agent that causes
cancer

ALL tobacco
products contain
cancer-causing
chemicals
Common Types of Cancer for
Tobacco Users:





Lung
Throat (voice box)
Mouth
Gums
Stomach
Buerger’s Disease




Only in smokers
Causes poor
circulation in feet
and hands
May lead to tissue
death and
amputation
Gets worse the
more you smoke
Addiction

Drug addiction – the
inability to control
one’s use of a drug

Tolerance – the
process of the body
getting used to a drug
Addiction

Physical dependence – a state in which the
body needs a drug to function normally

Psychological dependence – a state in
which you think you need a drug in order to
function

Withdrawal – the way in which the body
responds when a person stops using a
drug