BIOLOGY PROJECT

Smoking and tobacco use

NAME : NETANYEL SAMUEL

CLASS : XII-E
BOARD ROLL NO:
R.N PODAR SCHOOL

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 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Netanyel Samuel of XII-E has completed the Biology Project
in partial fulfilment of the curriculum of ALL INDIA SENIOR SECONDARY
CERTIFICATE EXAMINATION (AISSCE). The project was completed in R.N
Podar School during the year 2024-2025.

________________ _______________
External Examiner Internal Examiner

_____________ __________________
School Stamp Principal's Signature

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 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I would like to express my deepest regards to the principal Mrs Avnita Bir, for
providing us with the infrastructure and facilities for the project.

I would further like to extend my thanks to the Biology teacher, Mrs Sonia
Sharma, under whose guidance this project was performed. Her constant support
and invaluable guidance helped me to achieve completion of the project.

Lastly, I am grateful to my family and friends for their encouragement and support.

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 INDEX

SR TOPIC PAGE
NO. NO.
1 Introduction 5
2 Health Affects 6
3 Smoking, Tobacco Use, and HIV 7
4 The Bad News: How Smoking and Tobacco Use Can Hurt 8
Your Health
5 The Good News: How Quitting Smoking and 8
Tobacco Products Can Help Your Health
6 Help with Quitting 9
7 Taking Care of Yourself 10
8 Conclusion
9 Bibliography

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 INTRODUCTION
Smoking is a pervasive habit that has shaped human societies for
centuries, originating as a ritualistic and cultural practice before
evolving into a global public health concern. The act of smoking,
typically associated with the inhalation of tobacco smoke, exposes users
to a complex mixture of chemicals, many of which are harmful and
addictive. Despite widespread awareness of its dangers, smoking
remains a leading cause of preventable diseases, including lung cancer,
heart disease, and respiratory illnesses. It also imposes a significant
economic burden on healthcare systems worldwide.
The allure of smoking is often tied to social, psychological, and cultural
factors making it a complex behaviour to address. For some, it is a
means of stress relief or a social bonding tool, while for others, it is a
deeply ingrained addiction fuelled by nicotine dependency. Beyond
health, smoking has far-reaching implications, from environmental
damage caused by cigarette waste to the ethical concerns surrounding
the marketing tactics of the tobacco industry. Addressing smoking is not
just about combating addiction but also fostering a broader cultural shift
towards healthier lifestyles. As the fight against smoking continues,
understanding its multifaceted impact is crucial for crafting effective
interventions and promoting long-term well-being.

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 HEALTH EFFECTS

Smoking has severe long-term impacts on physical health, making it

a leading cause of preventable diseases and deaths worldwide.
Prolonged smoking is directly linked to lung cancer, with tobacco
smoke responsible for around 85% of cases. Additionally, it
significantly increases the risk of heart disease by damaging blood
vessels, leading to high blood pressure, stroke, and heart attacks.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), a progressive
lung condition, is another major consequence, characterised by
breathing difficulties and reduced lung function.

Second-hand smoke poses serious risks to non-smokers, including

children. Exposure to smoke-filled environments can lead to
respiratory issues, asthma, and increased susceptibility to lung
infections. In pregnant women, second-hand smoke increases the
risk of complications like low birth weight and preterm delivery,
posing a threat to maternal and infant health.

Mentally, smoking is often perceived as a stress reliever, but this is

misleading. Nicotine provides temporary relaxation while
reinforcing dependency, perpetuating a cycle of addiction. Instead
of alleviating stress, smoking often worsens mental health over time,
contributing to anxiety and depression in chronic users.

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 Smoking, Tobacco Use, and HIV
Cigarette smoking is a dangerous habit even for those in perfect health.
However, the risks involved with smoking seem to be greater for those
living with HIV. In fact, recent research has shown that, for people
living with HIV and receiving good medical care, those who smoke lose
more years of their life to smoking than to HIV.

In years past, many people living with HIV did not worry about the
serious illnesses that smoking might cause because they did not expect
to be alive long enough to get them. Now that people living with HIV
are living longer, healthier lives, it is important to pay attention to issues
that affect their long-term health.
Using tobacco products may affect HIV in several ways:
* Less successful HIV drug therapy: researchers think smoking may
cause HIV drugs not to work as well as they should
* More likely to experience side effects of HIV drugs
* Lower CD4 counts
* Greater chance of developing opportunistic infections (OIs)

How Smoking and Tobacco Use Can Hurt Your Health

All forms of tobacco are harmful and addictive. This includes
cigarettes, pipes, and cigars as well as smokeless tobacco products
such as snuff and chewing tobacco (also known as chew or dip).
Smoking affects every system in the body. Some of tobacco's
harmful effects are caused by nicotine, the addictive substance in
tobacco, while others are caused by any of the 250 toxic chemicals
in tobacco smoke. In the short run, smoking raises your blood

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pressure and heart rate. However, most of the serious negative
effects of smoking take years to develop and most commonly
include cancer, heart disease, and lung problems.
Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) or vape pens are battery-powered
tubes or cylinders that often look like pens, cigars, pipes, or
cigarettes. While they are smokeless and do not expose users to the
tar found in cigarettes, they do contain nicotine, the addictive
substance in tobacco. Users inhale the nicotine as it is released by
the e-cigarette in the form of water vapor, like a mist or cloud (often
called "vaping")

Smoking and Heart Disease

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Smoking is very bad for your heart. Smoking causes your blood vessels to
constrict (get smaller). This reduces oxygen flow to the rest of your body,
raises your blood pressure, and makes your heart work harder. To learn more
about how the heart works – and how smoking affects heart health – see our
fact sheet on Caring for Your Heart.
Many people living with HIV have high levels of lipids (fats or fat-like
substances) such as cholesterol and/or triglycerides in their blood because of
HIV itself or because of certain HIV drugs. If you have too much cholesterol
in your blood, it can build up in your arteries, forming plaque. Smoking
makes this problem worse, since it makes your blood vessels stickier, thus
making it easier for plaque to clog your arteries and cause a heart attack or
stroke. For more information, see our fact sheet on Hyperlipidemia: High
Cholesterol and Triglycerides.
Smoking uses up your body's levels of vitamins and minerals called
antioxidants. These vitamins and minerals help protect the body against heart
disease and cancer.

Smoking and Cancer

In the US, investigators have reported that smoking is the single biggest risk
factor for non-AIDS defining cancers among people living with HIV. In
people living with HIV, smoking affects the risk of getting cancer more than
having a low CD4 count, a non-suppressed viral load, hepatitis C, or an AIDS
diagnosis. Please see our fact sheet on Cancers for more information about
cancer and HIV.
Most people know that there is a strong link between cigarette smoking and
lung cancer. Of the several thousand chemicals in tobacco smoke, at least 69
are known to cause cancer. Lung cancer is very serious and usually fatal
(causes death). Compared to non-smokers, smoking increases women's risk
of lung cancer by 13 times – and men's by 23 times.
In addition to lung cancer, smokers are also at higher risk for:
* Cervical cancer
* Uterine cancer

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* Cancer of the mouth, throat and voice box
* Colon and rectal cancer
* Stomach, pancreas and liver cancer
* Bladder and kidney cancer
* Blood cancer

Smoking and Lung Disease

Smoking damages the small air sacs in the lungs called alveoli that help us
take in oxygen. It is therefore the main cause of chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic
bronchitis. Smoking can also make asthma worse and can increase the risk of
respiratory infections. This is especially important for people with low CD4
counts.

Smoking and Opportunistic Infections

The rates of opportunistic infections (OIs) among people living with HIV
have dropped drastically since people began using combinations of HIV
drugs. But studies show that smokers are more likely to get certain OIs than
non-smokers. Smoking has been shown to increase your risk for developing:
* Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP)
* Tuberculosis (TB)
* Cryptococcal meningitis
* Thrush (an oral fungal infection)
* Cervical cancer
* Anal cancer

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 How Quitting Smoking and Tobacco Products Can
Help Your Health
No matter how long you have been smoking, quitting can greatly improve
your health. Within 24 hours, your blood pressure and heart rate drop, and
your risk of heart attack and stroke begin to go down. Within several months,
you can have better circulation and lung function. Over several years, you
can greatly reduce your risk of lung cancer and heart disease. In a large study,
people who quit smoking between age 35 and 44 lived about nine years
longer than those who continued to smoke. People who quit by age 50 were
half as likely to die of smoking-related causes in the next 15 years than those
who continued to smoke.
Quitting smoking or going tobacco-free has other benefits as well:
* Improved sense of smell and taste
* Healthier-looking skin
* Whiter teeth, healthier gums, and fresher breath
* Increased ability to participate in physical activities (exercise, playing with
your children, home projects)
* Economic savings: no more money spent on tobacco products; money
saved on health insurance premiums
* No more restrictions: as more places ban smoking (restaurants, airports,
malls, parks), smoke-friendly spaces are harder to find

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Help with Quitting
There are several things that are helpful to understand if you are thinking
about quitting smoking or smokeless tobacco. The first has to do with why it
is so hard to quit and to stick with it once you have quit. Nicotine is a
naturally occurring substance in the tobacco plant. It is addictive, just like
heroin and cocaine. After smoking regularly for some time, people become
physically and emotionally dependent on nicotine. In order for quitting to
work, both the physical and emotional dependence must be addressed.
The physical dependence causes uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms such
as anxiety, irritability, impatience, restlessness, trouble concentrating,
dizziness, trouble sleeping, depression, headaches, and increased appetite.
These symptoms usually are at their worst two to three days after quitting and
gradually get better over several weeks. It may be easier to remain tobacco

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free if you know in advance how you may feel and how long you may feel
that way. There are ways to ease these symptoms; they are listed below.
Overcoming the emotional dependence on tobacco use can be just as difficult
for some people trying to quit. For many, smoking becomes a part of their
daily routine, whether it is a means of relaxing or handling anxiety, boredom,
or stress. Often, smoking or using smokeless tobacco is associated with
triggers – particular emotions (e.g., anxiety) or activities (e.g., having a cup
of coffee, socialising with friends) that give you the urge to smoke. Knowing
your triggers and how to avoid them can be a key part of successful quitting.
Experts understand that quitting smoking and smokeless tobacco products is
not just a matter of willpower. It is important to discuss your plan to quit with
your healthcare provider. In addition, it is important that they be encouraging,
identify local resources, and suggest appropriate medical therapies to help
you quit. There are several tools available to help you quit, and often a
combination of the therapies below is needed:
* Nicotine replacement therapy: this is used to help ease withdrawal
symptoms while breaking the smoking habit. Afterwards, the dose is
gradually reduced and eventually stopped. Nicotine replacement therapy is
available in several forms:
* Transdermal patches (Habitrol, Nicoderm, Nicotrol): patches are worn on
the arm or torso (upper body), and nicotine is absorbed through the skin
* Gum (Nicorette, Thrive): nicotine is absorbed through the lining of the
mouth; recommended dose depends on the amount of tobacco previously
used
* Lozenges (Commit): hard candy that is sucked slowly and absorbed
through the lining of the mouth
* Inhaler (Nicorette,Nicotrol): a puff from the inhaler puts nicotine into a
vapour that is absorbed in the mouth; some smokers find it helpful that this
method is the most like smoking a cigarette; available by prescription only
* Nasal spray: spray of nicotine into nostrils; available by prescription only
* Note: e-cigarettes have not been approved for use as nicotine
replacement therapy

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* Anti-smoking medications:
* Zyban (buproprion): also an anti-depressant named Wellbutrin (at a
different dose), this drug reduces the urge to smoke; available by prescription
only
* Chantix (varenicline): reduces withdrawal symptoms and the pleasure
associated with smoking; available by prescription only
* Acupuncture: a complementary therapy that involves placing very small
needles around the outer ear to reduce cravings and promote relaxation
* Hypnosis: or hypnotherapy, involves reaching a state of deep relaxation in
which one is open to suggestions for behavioural change (such as quitting
smoking)
* Counselling and support: many people find it helpful to have professional
counselling or the organised support of others when quitting. Many places
have organized support groups and smoking cessation classes (in the US, see
your local chapter of the American Lung Association or American Cancer
Society).

Taking Care of Yourself

Cigarette smoking is a health risk that you control, and quitting smoking is
probably the single biggest thing you can do to improve your health.
Smoking is a hard habit to break. It gets more difficult the longer and the
more you smoke. If you tried to quit before and began smoking again, do not
worry. Many people need several tries before they quit for good.
If you feel you are unable to quit, just cutting down on the number of
cigarettes you smoke can help your health. Even though giving up smoking
may be one of the hardest things you ever do, it can also be one of the best
things you do for yourself, your health, your finances, and your family and
friends.

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 Bibliography

 https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/
 https://www.cancer.gov
 https://www.niehs.nih.gov

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