This Tuesday, May 31st, World No Tobacco Day is commemorated, a day that remembers the risks of smoking.According to data reported by the Ministry of Health, in 2019 the figures for deaths from diseases associated with smoking were 2,100 Costa Ricans. Meanwhile, at the global level, the World Health Organization (WHO) indicates that smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the world.
According to the National Institute of Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (IAFA), cigarettes contain more than 400 substances, most of them toxic and carcinogenic.They are deposited mainly in the arteries to produce progressive clogging and in other organs to cause cancer or lung diseases.
Cancer of the throat, stomach, lung, bladder, pancreas, breast, cervix and even prostate are the most recurrent to suffer people who smoke, according to specialists.
“Cigarettes contain substances that damage the body’s cells, such as nicotine and tar, which makes them more likely to suffer from any type of cancer,” explained Dr. Nadia Mayorga, medical coordinator of COOPESIBA R.L, which manages the Areas of Health of Barva and San Pablo de Heredia.
Same risk
The doctor wanted to deny the myth that smoking one or two cigarettes a day or just from time to time, is not prone to disease.”This hypothesis is false because cigarettes affect everyone differently,” he explained.
“For example, as doctors we find patients who have been smoking for many years and do not report any symptoms of cancer, while others who have less time are detected from this disease to cardiovascular problems,” he added.
Even the relatives of smokers are also prone to diseases
“Cigarette smoke is impregnated in the clothes, in the body and even in the furniture even if the smoker has the habit of smoking outside the house. With this scenario, non-smokers who live with him or her come into contact with these harmful substances and are at risk of developing the disease without having smoked,” said Dr. Mayorga.
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