Information About Smoking:
A Guide for Teens
You may have a friend who asked you to try smoking or maybe you saw someone smoking and thought it looked cool. People start smoking for a variety of reasons, but few who start know the risks involved in lighting that first cigarette.
Most teens are aware that people who have smoked for awhile can eventually get lung cancer, emphysema and other serious illnesses, but many don't know about the bad things that smoking can to them right now. This guide provides information about what smoking does to your body and some of the common reasons why people keep smoking even though they know it's bad for them. Thinking about these things can help you decide if you should continue smoking.
This guide answers some of your questions about smoking:
Why is cigarette smoking bad for me?
What do all these chemicals do to my body?
What happens to my lungs when I smoke?
I know smoking is bad for me, but what if I really like it?
Am I in control or are the cigarette companies?
Why should I stop smoking if I'm not addicted?
What if I’m not ready to quit?
Why is cigarette smoking bad for me? 
A cigarette contains about 4,000 chemicals, many of which are poisonous. Some of the worst ones are:
Every time you inhale smoke from a cigarette, small amounts of these chemicals get into your blood through your lungs. They travel to all the parts of your body and cause harm.
What do all these chemicals do to my body?
Even small amounts of the poisonous chemicals in cigarettes can do bad things to your body. Here are some facts about what smoking cigarettes does to you:
What happens to my lungs when I smoke?
Every time you inhale smoke from a cigarette, you kill some of the air sacks in your lungs, called alveoli. These air sacks are where the oxygen that you breathe in is transferred into your blood. Alveoli don't grow back, so when you destroy them, you have permanently destroyed part of your lungs. This means that you won't do as well in activities where breathing is important, like sports, dancing, or singing.
Smoking paralyzes the cilia that line your lungs. Cilia are little hairlike structures that move back and forth to sweep particles out of your lungs. When you smoke, the cilia can't move, so dust, pollen, and other things that you inhale sit in your lungs and build up and form tar.
I know smoking is bad for me, but what if I really like it?
Many teens like the feeling that smoking gives them. This good feeling is from the nicotine in the cigarettes. Many teens feel like smoking gives them a sense of independence, and helps them to feel more comfortable in social situations. If this sounds like you, you should stop and think about whether the things you like about smoking are really worth the risks.
Am I in control or are the cigarette companies?
Think about it this way: When you decide to start smoking, you are doing exactly what tobacco companies want you to do. They spend millions of dollars every year on advertising to try to get new people, especially teens, to smoke. Once they have you hooked, THEY are controlling YOU. You are forced to buy their products in order to support your addiction. Do you really want a big corporation controlling your life and telling you how to spend your money?
Why should I stop smoking if I'm not addicted?
Many people don't realize they are addicted to smoking. They think they can easily quit any time they want. Unfortunately, it is very easy to get addicted and hard to quit. Cigarettes are just as addictive as cocaine or heroin. Even if you only smoke one or two cigarettes a day and even if you've never bought a pack of cigarettes yourself, you are at risk. Try going a whole week without smoking at all. If you find this difficult, you are probably addicted to cigarettes.
What if I’m not ready to quit?
You may be saying, “I'll quit in a year or two when I'm ready.” A lot of people put off quitting smoking. Only 5% of teens think they will still be smoking in 5 years. Actually, about 75% of them are still smoking more than five years later. If you smoke, it will never seem like the right time to quit and quitting will never be easy. The longer you smoke, the harder it will be to stop and the more damage you will do to your body. Here are some reasons to quit sooner rather than later:
Updated: 2/13/08
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