More than 4000 chemicals result from smoking; these chemicals are either present naturally in tobacco plant or result from the combustion. Some of these chemicals are:

q Nicotine does the following:

1.- Constriction of blood vessels

2.- Increase platelets agglutination

3.- Travel, within seconds, from lungs to nicotinic receptors in the brain causing addiction

4.- Travels through placenta to fetus and through breast feeding to infant

qTar: with each puff, tar deposits in the lungs and in the stomach.

qCO: attaches to Hemoglobin and forms Carboxyhemoglobin (hemoglobin transports Oxygen to body cells; this mechanism is altered in smokers because CO attaches powerfully to hemoglobin). Cells do not get adequate Oxygen so the body produces more Red Blood Cells to compensate for this deficiency.

qBenzo Pyrene: Lab experiments on rats demonstrated that this chemical caused: increase in skin thickening, grow of warts, skin cancer.