Don’t Smoke (or Vape) Your Life Away!
Gift of Life’s Don’t Smoke (or Vape) Your Life Away Program empowers the community with invaluable information in the fight against tobacco and vaping. The program educates youth and adults about the risks of smoking and vaping to reduce disease and death.
Did you know?
of all cancer deaths are caused
by smoking cigarettes
Source: American Cancer Society
people die each year
from tobacco use
Source: CDC
more likely for young people to
try cigarettes after e-cigarettes
Source: Truth Initiative
The Risks of Smoking
- Your Risks: Cancers of the lung, pancreas, bladder and cervix; shortness
of breath, impotence, infertility, colds and bronchitis; heart attack and stroke; and emphysema - Risks You Impose On Others: Lung cancer, heart disease, and asthma
- Risks for Pregnant Smokers: Smoking during pregnancy may result in SIDS, respiratory infections and low birth weight in babies. Women who stop smoking before pregnancy or during the first 3 to 4 months of pregnancy reduce their risk of having a low birth weight baby.
The Benefits of NOT Smoking
- Living longer
- Saving money
- Looking and feeling better
- Improving your sense of smell and taste
- Setting a good example
If you’re interested in learning more about the dangers of tobacco use, please browse our HOPE Resources to find helpful literature and information.
What’s in Tobacco Smoke?
Tobacco smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, many of which are toxic to the body. Several of these chemicals are carcinogens, which have been proven to cause cancer.
The following are just some of the chemicals found in tobacco smoke:
Source: American Lung Association
The Dangers of E-cigarettes
Electronic cigarette devices are not a proven smoking cessation device; they are an alternative nicotine delivery device that will maintain or restore the habit and can hook a new generation addicted to nicotine.
There are no clinical studies on the long-term use of e-cigarettes, but we know they contain harmful chemicals, such as acetone, used in nail polish remover, and xylene, used in paint thinner.
E-cigarettes produce an aerosol, not water vapor. The aerosol is a mixture of chemicals and small particles that can hurt the lungs just like cigarette smoke.
E-cigarettes are just as addictive as regular cigarettes.
The Facts About E-cigarettes
A small dose of e-liquid (containing nicotine) is dangerous.
Less than one tablespoon of many of the e-liquids on the
market is enough to kill an adult, and as little
as a teaspoon could kill a child.
Liquid nicotine is extracted from tobacco, but unlike
tobacco leaves, liquid nicotine can be lethal. It can cause harm when it’s inhaled, but it can also be harmful when ingested
or absorbed through your skin.
Never allow the use of e-cigarettes in your home. They pollute the air and are harmful to you and your family.
Pregnant or breast feeding women, children, and teens should never use
e-cigarettes or be exposed to the aerosol due to the harm nicotine may cause to brain development.
The number of calls to poison centers involving e-cigarette liquids containing nicotine rose from 1 per month in 2010 to 215 per month in 2014.
Source: CDC
