7 Ways that Smoking Ruins Your Appearance

We all know the dangers of smoking from public service television ads and programs taught in the school, but these programs only teach us of the long-term health side effects. Smoking is linked to a variety of issues related to how we look on a daily basis. This article will look at seven ways smoking damages our appearance by ruining how we look on the outside.

1. Watery eyes

The first time you pick up a cigarette and get smoke in your eyes, you will notice a watery sensation. According to smoking-cessation.org, smoke contains formaldehyde, ammonia, and hydrogen sulfide, which causes irritation of the eyes. According to agingeye.net, smoking is a primary risk factor for cataracts.

2. Yellow fingers

Smoke that gets on the fingers from the continued burning of a cigarette lingers on smokers hands, which causes a disgusting yellowing buildup. This yellowing can be removed with time and washing of the hands for early smokers, but long-term buildup takes a while to remove.

3. Wrinkling

In a world of Botox and anti-aging creams, Americans are always finding new ways to mask the aging process. However, smokers experience constriction in blood vessels, which decrease blood from and cause wrinkling to occur. This appearance change is noticed by looking at a smoker and non-smoker side by side in their 40's or 50's. The non-smoker will look predominantly younger than the smoker will.

4. Tooth loss

According to health.com and the 2005 issue of the U.K. study in the Journal of Clinical Periodontology, smokers face risk six-times greater than non-smokers for the development of gum disease, which eventually leads to tooth loss.

5. Shortness of breath

Think shortness of breath doesn't contribute to declining looks? Think again. Carbon monoxicide in blood reduces the amount of oxygen in blood, which leads to shortness of breath even during simple exercise. How does it look when you get short of breath walking around the mall? Not so great.

6. Yellowing of the teeth

The thousands of chemicals and tar found in cigarettes leads to junky build up on teeth. The buildup leads to yellowing of the teeth, which is not only unattractive, but also unhealthy oral hygiene.

7. Premature aging

Wrinkling, multiple cancer risks, and yellowing of the teeth are just a few ways that smoking contributes to premature aging. Premature aging is not just with appearance, but also with mortality rates. According to cancer.org, male smokers lost an average of 13.2 years of life and female smokers lost 14.5 years of life due to smoking.

Sources:

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ped/content/ped_10_2x_cigarette_smoking.asp

http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20340112_13,00.html

http://www.agingeye.net/cataract/cataractinformation.php

http://www.smoking-cessation.org/content/healthissues.asp