Smoking affects how long you live Research has shown that smoking reduces life expectancy by seven to eight years. An interesting calculation predicts that on average, each cigarette shortens the life of the smoker by seven to eleven minutes. Major diseases caused by smoking Cardiovascular disease due to atherosclerosis is the main cause of death due to smoking, with an overall increase of death of 1.7 times. Atherosclerosis is the term used to describe the clogging up of the arteries with fatty material, leaving them narrow, blocked or rigid. It can take many forms depending on which blood vessels are involved, and all of them are more common in people who smoke.
Coronary thrombosis is a blood clot in the arteries supplying the heart.
Approximately 30 per cent of cases are caused by smoking. Nine out of ten people who require a heart bypass operation are smokers or ex-smokers. The vessels to the the brain can become blocked, which may lead to collapse, stroke and paralysis. If the kidney arteries are affected, then high blood pressure or kidney failure results. Blockage to the vascular supply to the legs may lead to gangrene and amputation.