Effects of Smoking on the Skin
Yes it can harm it in several ways. Here are more reasons to quit smoking now.
The foods we eat are broken down into nutrients and waste. The nutrients are absorbed by the bloodstream, which transports them around the body to the various organs, the largest of which is the skin.
Oxygen is also transported and delivered in the same way. The cells absorb the oxygen and this is vital for the health of the organs and the life process itself. This whole process takes place automatically when we breathe. . .
Except when we are breathing in smoke!
When we inhale the smoke from a cigarette the carbon monoxide from the smoke is absorbed by the hemoglobin in the blood. Carbon monoxide is a colorless odorless highly toxic gas also found in the smoke from car exhausts.
The blood can absorb carbon monoxide 200 times as fast as oxygen so a lot of the oxygen is displaced by carbon monoxide. The organs including the skin are starved of life giving oxygen and slowly poisoned by the carbon monoxide.
But that’s not the end of it. Cigarette smoke also contains the following deadly cocktail of chemicals: Ammonia, hydrogen cyanide, butane, nicotine, carbolic acid, collidine, formic aldehyde, lutidine, parvoline, prussic acid, pyridine, arsenic and cadmium. This list is by no means complete.
Skin is fed from within. The effect on the skin of all these is catastrophic. The liver goes into overdrive trying to expel these chemicals from the body and cannot perform its normal functions properly. The skin loses its healthy glow and takes on a yellowish-gray cast. The more cigarettes smoked, the worse your skin will look.
Smoking also causes premature aging in two ways. It uses up vitamin C in the body, about 35mg for each cigarette. Vitamin C is an unstable vitamin and cannot be manufactured by the body.
One of its functions is the preservation of the collagen in the skin, the substance that gives skin its plump and youthful appearance. The collagen breaks down causing premature wrinkles around the eyes and mouth.
The physical act of smoking causes us to squint, exaggerating the wrinkles around the eyes. Every time we purse our lips we deepen the wrinkles around our mouth as well.
Do yourself a favor! Stop poisoning yourself. Quit smoking now. Save the money you spend on these toxic weeds and go out and treat yourself to a facial or a new skin cream instead.
Your skin will thank you for it!
About The Author: Wendy Owen – Wendy has had a lifetime interest in general and alternative health and skin care.
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Let’s also remember that the skin is the largest organ of our body, and that it’s very permeable. I wonder how much of the toxins in the smoke are absorbed directly.