Smoking - not cool, just harmful

Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.

More posts by Christiane Fux All content is checked by medical journalists.

Smoking is uncool - at least that is the opinion of more and more young people in Germany. The number of young smokers between the ages of twelve and seventeen has more than halved since 2001. A current study shows: At that time, 27.5 percent of young people smoked. Today it is only seven percent. And that's good! Because smoking is extremely damaging to your health.

Poisonous butt in sheep's clothing

Whether you are a smoker or a non-smoker - that is usually decided in your teenage years. If you did not become addicted to nicotine before the age of 20, you will mostly stay "clean" for life. However, once you get stuck on the glowing stick, it is very difficult to get rid of it. The tobacco companies know that very well. They added additives to the cigarettes to make inhaling less painful. In addition, there are aromatic substances in the cigarettes that sweeten the pungent taste.

E-cigarettes filled with a nicotine-containing liquid aren't much better either. Although they do not contain tobacco, they contain a lot of flavoring substances. So-called vaping can even be a gateway drug to normal cigarette smoking.

Smoking because everyone is doing it?

As a teenager, in particular, you may find it difficult to act differently from what your friends do. The fact that you develop your own opinion and also represent it or learn to say "no" is important for self-confidence and personal development. So think twice about whether you really want to smoke just because your friends are smoking. The first cigarettes taste really bad anyway. In fact, there is absolutely no good reason to waste your money on cigarettes.

Deadly smoke

Everyone knows by now that smoking is unhealthy and can even have fatal consequences. Lung cancer and heart attacks, blindness, infertility, impotence - the list of possible consequential damage is endless. Nicotine is one of the most powerful poisons in the world.

But unfortunately our psyche is trimmed to overlook long-term consequences when there is a short-term reward. And nicotine is a substance that shoots straight into the brain and stimulates the reward center there. The more you smoke, the more your brain craves the drug.

The consequences of smoking do not only become noticeable in old age, but the smoke also has negative consequences when you are still young.

Bad skin

There are toxins in the smoke that are bad for your skin. They decrease blood flow and make them look gray and cheesy. They also accelerate skin aging - early wrinkling is inevitable in smokers. Wounds will also heal worse if you smoke. In addition, cigarettes can cause inflammatory skin conditions such as acne and eczema.

Bad breath and bad teeth

Smoking also damages your teeth. Not only do they turn yellow from the smoke, but the biological balance in the mouth is disturbed. Bacteria can settle better. As a result, plaque sprouts profusely and the gums can become inflamed. The consequences can be tooth decay and bad breath. Due to the poor blood circulation, the jawbone is also poorly supplied and it breaks down. Smokers therefore lose their teeth earlier.

Lack of fitness

Smoking makes you tired and unfit. In smokers, the lungs are stuck together with mucus and tar. As a result, it is less able to absorb oxygen. The chronic bronchitis that plagues many smokers can, in extreme cases, lead to pulmonary emphysema. The lungs over-inflate and you get shortness of breath.

Cigarettes also weaken muscles. The carbon monoxide in tobacco smoke occupies the red blood cells, which are normally responsible for transporting oxygen. That is why there is less oxygen in the blood and physical performance is reduced. After smoking a single cigarette, your muscle strength temporarily decreases by around ten percent and your ability to react worsens.

Smoking ban for young people

The Youth Protection Act prohibits young people under the age of 18 from smoking in public. Tobacco products may also not be sold to children and young people. This also applies to e-cigarettes or (e-) hookahs. Smoking has long been banned in many schools - even for adults.

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