It is a common knowledge that smoking is extremely dangerous to health. But did you know that aside from the usual lung and heart ailments developed from prolonged exposure to cigarette smoke, the addictive habit has also been found to pose adverse effects to the skin. Thus, many experts and dermatologists assert that quitting smoking is a good skin care measure.



The skin is identified as the largest body organ because it serves as an outer covering of internal systems. It is a common misconception to take care of the skin only from the outside. Through the years, research efforts have established the clear relationship between overall skin health and the nutrients that comes from within. It is in this concept that the major adverse effects of smoking to skin health can be explicitly explained.

The are simple explanations why you are advised to quit smoking to be able to attain good skin care. The first is that the nutrients found in tobacco cause constrictions at the outermost blood vessels, which are instrumental in feeding skin cells with the essential nutrients and oxygen. Thus, smoking is a major identified cause of skin wrinkling and sagging even prematurely. Smoking also has been found to deplete the skin's elastin and collagen, which give strength and elasticity to the skin.

Lack of oxygen supply results to severe skin discoloration. Because the skin is deprived of the normal and necessary levels of oxygen because of smoking, the area especially around the facial region tends to appear yellowish or sallow. Repeated exposure to heat and smoke coming from cigarettes also result to similar occurrences.

There are about 4,000 identified chemicals and harmful substances found in each stick of cigarettes. Scientists assert that most of these are toxic and are proven to be highly irritants. On top of that, there are 40 carcinogenic substances included that lead to certain forms of skin cancer, specifically the very deadly Squamous Cell Carcinoma. This form of cancer could metastasize to prompt formation of cancer in other body parts.

Aside from these identified internal effects of smoking to overall skin health, the movement of the lips done when puffing smoke from cigarette sticks has been found to form wrinkles around the mouth. That is because people tend to pucker when puffing and emitting smoke from lit cigarettes. The smoke also tends to form wrinkles around the eyes as people naturally tend to resort to the usual reflex of shrinking eyes when exposed to smoke.

The best time to quit smoking is now. Researchers and experts assert that by dumping the addictive habit right away, you would be able to reverse the impact of the activity to your skin. Thus, quitting smoking is one of the best and most effective skin care regimen. For smokers, the attempt could be really hard and could be a major challenge. If you are just starting to form the habit, it would be better if you would drop it right away before you become addicted. Quit smoking and expect to have more beautiful and healthy skin.