15 Fast Facts About Cigarette Smoking

Most people who smoke first
light up a cigarette when they're
teenagers. In fact, 80% of
smokers began the habit before
they turned 18. Here are a few
quick facts about cigarette
smoking, nicotine and tobacco
that you may not have heard
before. Even if you have, they're
facts that are worth keeping in
mind when your friends and
relatives light up a cigarette.

1. Nearly 70% of people who
smoke say they wish they
could quit.
2. Teens who smoke cough
and wheeze three times
more than teens who
don't smoke.
3. Smoking causes cancer,
heart disease, lung disease
and strokes.
4. Smokers as young as 18
years old have shown
evidence of developing
heart disease.
5. More than 70% of young
people who smoke said
they wish they hadn't
started doing it.
6. Studies show that 43% of
people who smoke three
or fewer cigarettes a day
become addicted to
nicotine.
7. More than 434,000
Americans die each year
from smoking-related
diseases.
8. One-third of all new
smokers will eventually die
from a smoking-related
disease.
9. Nicotine -- one of the main
ingredients in cigarettes --
is a poison.
10. Nicotine is as addictive as
heroin and cocaine.
11. All tobacco products -- that
includes cigarettes, cigars
and chewing tobacco --
have nicotine in them.
12. Smoking makes you feel
weaker and more tired
because it prevents oxygen
from reaching your heart.
13. Smoking hurts the people
around you: More than
53,000 people die each
year from secondhand
smoke.
14. Cigarettes have tons of
harmful chemicals in them,
including ammonia (found
in toilet cleaner), carbon
monoxide (found in car
exhaust) and arsenic
(found in rat poison).
15. Ten years after quiting
smoking, a person's risk of
lung cancer and heart
disease returns to that of a
non-smoker.