Tobacco, Nicotine, and Vaping
You Can Quit: Here is How
Quitting smoking, vaping or chewing tobacco is one of the most important steps you can take to improve your health. This is true no matter how old you are or how long you have used. Quitting has numerous health benefits, including the improvement of health status and quality of life, reducing the risk of premature death and reducing the risk for may adverse health effects, such as heart disease and cancer.
Many people who smoke, vape or chew tobacco are addicted to nicotine, a drug that is found naturally in tobacco. This can make it hard to quit. The good news is there are proven treatments that can help you quit.
My Life, My Quit is a free and confidential way to quit smoking or vaping. Text “Start My Quit” to 36072 or click “chat with a coach.”
Health Effects
Smoking
Cigarette smoking leads to disease and disability and harms nearly every organ of the body. More than 16 million Americans are living with a disease caused by smoking. For every person who dies because of smoking, at least 30 people live with a serious smoking-related illness. Smoking causes cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung diseases, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Smoking also increases risk for tuberculosis, certain eye diseases, and problems of the immune system, including rheumatoid arthritis.
Secondhand smoke exposure contributes to approximately 41,000 deaths among nonsmoking adults and 400 deaths in infants each year. Secondhand smoke causes stroke, lung cancer, and coronary heart disease in adults. Children who are exposed to secondhand smoke are at increased risk for sudden infant death syndrome, acute respiratory infections, middle ear disease, more severe asthma, respiratory symptoms, and slowed lung growth.
Smoke Free Workplace
Ohio voters approved a smoking ban in November of 2006 which prohibits smoking in public places and places of employment. The ban provides a statewide minimum standard of protection from the health hazards associated with exposure to secondhand smoke.
https://odh.ohio.gov/know-our-programs/smoke-free-workplace-program/smokefreeworkplaceactandprogram
Vaping
Vaping companies try to convince you that their products are safe. But the truth is every time you vape, you breathe in chemicals that hurt your lungs and heart and leave you feeling stressed. Many vaping products also claim to be “nicotine-free,” but still have nicotine in them. Nicotine is addictive and leaves you craving more.
- A CDC study found that 99% of the e-cigarettes sold in assessed venues in the United States contained nicotine.
- Some vape product labels do not disclose that they contain nicotine, and some vape liquids marketed as containing 0% nicotine have been found to contain nicotine.
- Nicotine can harm the developing adolescent brain. The brain keeps developing until about age 25.
- Using nicotine in adolescence can harm the parts of the brain that control attention, learning, mood, and impulse control.
- Each time a new memory is created or a new skill is learned, stronger connections – or synapses – are built between brain cells. Young people’s brains build synapses faster than adult brains. Nicotine changes the way these synapses are formed.
- Using nicotine in adolescence may also increase risk for future addiction to other drugs
Vaping can also cause serious lung injury. Check out this link to learn more about lung injuries associated with vaping.
Lung Injury Associated with the Use of E-Cigarette, or Vaping, Products – https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/severe-lung-disease.html
Chewing Tobacco
Smokeless tobacco is associated with many health problems. Using smokeless tobacco:
- Can lead to nicotine addiction
- Causes cancer of the mouth, esophagus (the passage that connects the throat to the stomach), and pancreas (a gland that helps with digestion and maintaining proper blood sugar levels)
- Is associated with diseases of the mouth
- Can increase risks for early delivery and stillbirth when used during pregnancy
- Can cause nicotine poisoning in children
- May increase the risk for death from heart disease and stroke
Ohio Law
As of October 17, 2019 it is illegal to give, sell, or otherwise distribute cigarettes, other tobacco products, or alternative nicotine products like e-cigarette/vaping products to any person under the age of 21.
See Ohio Revised Code 2927.02 (http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/2927.02v2) for the law’s exact language.
Resources
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
