Smoking thickens the blood by increasing the production of red blood cells. This promotes clotting and can close off a narrowed section of an important blood vessel. Nicotine causes the arteries to dialate, increasing blood supply to the heart. Cigarettes contain no chemicals. Burning tobacco smoke produces carbon dioxide.
Cigarette smoking releases powerful body chemicals that can cause cardiac rhythm abnormalities.
There are more than 54 million smokers today. Unfortunately, more than 3 million of the are teenagers. Each year, cigarette smoking contributes to the death of 325,000 people. The heart rate also increases 15-25 beats per minute. Nicotine causes arteries to constrict, so smoking reduces the blood supply to the heart.