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31st May is observed as World No Tobacco Day (WNTD). WHO as well as public health champions throughout the world are marking WNTD this year by focusing on the diverse ways in which tobacco poses a threat to the environment that we live in.
This year’s global campaign aims to increase public awareness about the environmental impact of the complete tobacco cycle, right from its cultivation and production to the distribution and generation of toxic waste. The campaign also aims to expose the tobacco industry’s attempt to greenwash its reputation and make its products more alluring by effectively marketing them as being environmentally friendly.
Tobacco Products
Everyone knows that cigarette smoking is bad for health, but are you aware of the fact that it can lead to type 2 diabetes? And if you already have diabetes, smoking can worsen your condition.
Tobacco smoke as well as tobacco products, such as cigars, pipes, and smokeless tobacco, contain several harmful as well as potentially harmful constituents that directly affect diverse organ systems as well as physiological processes in a tissue-specific manner. Research has proven that smoking is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus.
How Smoking Can Lead To Type 2 diabetes?
- Insulin facilitates the entry of blood sugar into cells, but nicotine alters cells to an extent where they fail to respond to insulin, which causes blood sugar levels to increase.
- Chemicals present in cigarettes are harmful to body cells and lead to inflammation. This further makes cells stop responding to insulin.
- Individuals who smoke are at a higher risk of developing belly fat, which increases the risk of type 2 diabetes even when they are not overweight.
Thus, if you smoke, you are 30-40% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes in comparison with those who do not smoke. The more you use tobacco products, the higher the risk.
If You Already Have Diabetes
Breaking the habit of smoking is one of the best things that you can do to stay in optimum health. Managing diabetes is truly challenging, and smoking can worsen your condition. Nicotine is known to increase blood sugar levels and makes them harder to keep in control. Individuals with diabetes who smoke need larger insulin doses to keep their blood glucose levels in the target range.
Diabetes can lead to severe health complications, including heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, and nerve damage (which can further lead to amputation of a leg, foot, or toe). If you have type 2 diabetes and smoke, you are much more likely to develop complications that are much worse in comparison with those who have diabetes but do not smoke.
Heart disease needs special attention. It is one of the leading causes of deaths, and both diabetes and smoking increase its risk. Over the course of time, high blood sugar levels can damage blood vessels and nerves in and around your heart. Cigarette smoking, too, can damage blood vessels by increasing plaque (which is a fatty, waxy substance that accumulates on the walls of your arteries).
Tobacco Use And Insulin Resistance
The precise relationship between tobacco use and insulin resistance might be confounded by several associated variables. For instance, insulin resistance is frequently associated with an increased in body habitus, and an increase in body mass index (BMI) is a known risk factor for diabetes. Although smoking has been linked to an overall lower BMI in comparison with that seen in non-smokers, it has been linked to increased central adiposity. The eventual increase in central adiposity may lead to insulin resistance and diabetes in smokers.
To Sum It All Up:
World No Tobacco Day is observed every year on May 31st. Smoking tobacco is one of the leading causes of death throughout the world. Moreover, smoking is a known risk factor for type 2 diabetes. Nicotine, which is present in cigarettes, alter cells to such an extent that they fail to respond to insulin, causing spikes in blood sugar levels, eventually leading to diabetes. Moreover, smoking can lead to much worse diabetic complications, such as blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, and nerve damage (which can eventually pave the way for amputation). Smoking can also increase the chances of formation of plaque in the walls of the arteries, thus increasing your chances of heart disease. Lastly, an increase in central adiposity can lead to insulin resistance as well as diabetes in those who use tobacco products.
