In the streets and alleys, you can often see such a scene: someone is comfortably holding a cigarette, swallowing clouds and spitting smoke, looking leisurely and complacent. But do you know that this seemingly ordinary behavior is eroding their health step by step? Many people always feel that they are physically tough, and smoking is just a daily pastime, not a big deal. But the real reaction of the body is often the opposite of what they think. Coughing from time to time and panting after climbing a few flights of stairs are seemingly inconspicuous minor problems, but in fact they may be distress signals from the body, but they are ruthlessly ignored. There are also some "old smoking guns", a pack of cigarettes a day, smoking for more than ten years, or even twenty or thirty years, have long been accustomed to the company of tobacco, and think that it has no effect. But when you are really sick, you can't regret it, but at that time, maybe it's too late.

So, what kind of damage will it bring to the body by swallowing clouds and spitting fog every day? What are the organs in the body that are quietly being "tortured" by tobacco and we are unaware of it?

When it comes to the dangers of smoking, the lungs are the first thing that comes to most people's minds. After all, the smoke from the burning of cigarettes goes directly to the lungs, which bear the brunt of the "baptism" of tobacco. But have you ever thought that when you smoke every day, the first problem in your body may not be your lungs? This may sound counterintuitive, but according to rich clinical experience and the latest research results, the first two organs of the body to sound the alarm are actually the brain and intestines.

The brain: the intellectual center "eroded" by tobacco

Let's start with the brain. The damage to the brain caused by smoking is far more insidious and serious than we think. Many people find smoking to be refreshed and refreshed, but this is just a short-lived "illusion of euphoria" created by nicotine. It's like drinking coffee, you feel energetic when you first drink it, but when you finish it, you get even more tired. After smoking for a long time, the brain will gradually become sluggish, the reaction speed will be slow, and the memory will be much weaker. The "culprit" behind this is none other than the harmful substances in tobacco. These substances act as "troublemakers", making the walls of blood vessels rough and uneven, and the blood supply to the brain is naturally affected by the gradual slowing down of the blood flow that used to flow smoothly. Imagine what happens if the brain is in a state of lack of oxygen and insufficient blood supply all year round?

Insomnia, difficulty concentrating, and irritability are just some of the milder symptoms. More seriously, brain atrophy, cognitive impairment, and even terrible diseases such as stroke and dementia may slowly approach long-term smokers over time. There was a man in finance who was in his thirties and should have had a quick head. But I don't know when he began to forget things frequently, and the account book that he was familiar with had to be checked five times a day to barely remember. After a detailed examination, it was found that there was a serious problem with his cerebral blood supply. And the root cause is actually caused by his bad habit of two packs of cigarettes a day for more than ten years.

More worryingly, the damage to the brain caused by smoking is often irreversible. Once the blood vessels in the brain become stiff and narrow, it will be difficult for the brain to return to its original healthy state, even if you make up your mind to quit smoking. Research data shows that smokers have a much higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, better known as dementia in old age, than non-smokers. This risk is multiplied by long-term heavy smoking. You think it's just that your memory has deteriorated due to age, but you don't know that your brain has been "burned" by tobacco for years of spitting.

In addition, nicotine, a key ingredient in tobacco, quietly alters the normal function of neurons in the brain. Especially in the case of long-term exposure to nicotine, it will not only make people addicted to smoking, but also cause emotional instability, and may even induce depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses. Some smokers end up smoking more to relieve the anxiety caused by nicotine withdrawal, doesn't it sound like they are stuck in a cycle that is difficult to break free from? Yes, addiction to cigarettes is like a well-designed "scam" that makes you think you can get easy from it, but in fact you become deeply dependent on it, and your life becomes a mess without it.

The gut: the "inner ecology" disrupted by tobacco

Then focus on the gut. Who would have thought that smoking would be inextricably linked to gut health? But the fact is that people who smoke regularly can have serious damage to the environment in their intestines. The gut is like a "miniature ecological universe" inside the human body, where hundreds of millions of microorganisms live. They each have their own role to play in helping us digest food, absorb nutrients, and play an important role in regulating immunity. However, the toxins in tobacco act as "aggressors", completely disrupting this otherwise harmonious and orderly balance.

Many people suffer from constipation, diarrhea, flatulence, gastrointestinal discomfort and other problems for a long time, and they always think that there is a problem with their diet, but they do not realize that the real root cause is the intestinal flora disorder caused by smoking. Studies have found that smoking significantly reduces the number of beneficial bacteria in the gut, and the number of "good bacteria" such as lactic acid bacteria and bifidobacteria, which are essential for gut health, dropped dramatically under the influence of tobacco. On the contrary, harmful bacteria that can cause inflammation and may even cause cancer thrive in large numbers in the process. Over time, the intestinal wall gradually thins, the mucosal barrier is damaged, and the immune function of the intestine is greatly reduced.

有一位在倉庫工作多年的患者，時常被肚子問題困擾，時而腹瀉，時而便秘，他總覺得是吃壞了肚子。可實際上，他的飲食一直規律健康。經過深入檢查，醫生發現他的腸道菌群極度紊亂。在與醫生的交流中，才得知他一天要抽兩包煙，煙齡將近二十年。腸道一旦出現問題，可不僅僅是腹瀉這麼簡單。菌群紊亂會引發慢性炎症，而慢性炎症堪稱眾多慢性病和癌症的 “溫床”。例如腸易激綜合征、克羅恩病等令人頭疼的腸道疾病，吸煙者患病的幾率比普通人高出數倍。有研究表明，吸煙者患潰瘍性結腸炎的風險，是非吸煙者的 2.5 倍。

What is more alarming is that the association between smoking and colorectal cancer has attracted more and more attention in recent years. In the past, it was widely believed that smoking was mainly harmful to the lungs and could cause lung cancer. But now it has been found that many people who have smoked for decades have finally been diagnosed with bowel cancer. This type of cancer often has no obvious symptoms in the early stage, and by the time the body reacts significantly, the disease has often progressed to a more serious stage. Tobacco contains a variety of carcinogens, such as benzopyrene, nitrosamines, etc., which not only enter the lungs with the smoke, but also enter the digestive tract during swallowing, which has a direct impact on the intestines. Once the intestine is damaged, it is difficult to repair, and after repeated damage, it is like planting a "time bomb" and gradually becoming a hotbed of cancer.

Brain-gut linkage: a "chain reaction" of tobacco harm

You may think that the brain and gut are two separate systems that are unrelated, but they are not. Nowadays, a new concept - the "brain-gut axis" is gradually entering the public eye. To put it simply, there is a close connection between the brain and the gut like a "neural highway", they affect each other and are related to each other. When emotionally unstable, intestinal function may be affected and disordered; On the contrary, the imbalance of intestinal flora will also lead to people being more likely to have anxiety, depression and other bad emotions. And smoking, it has become a "double killer" that destroys both the brain and the intestines.

There was a mechanic who worked night shifts for a long time, and due to the nature of his work, it was difficult to get a good night's sleep during the day, and he relied on smoking at night to refresh himself. Over time, he began to experience symptoms of anxiety and insomnia, and at the same time, diarrhea often plagued him, and his whole mental state deteriorated. After going to the hospital for examination, the results were shocking: the function of the cerebral cortex was obviously abnormal, and the intestinal flora was even more disordered like a "mess". The doctor diagnosed this as a classic "brain-gut axis disorder syndrome", and the main cause of this condition was his many years of smoking, which caused systematic and severe damage to the body.

The most terrible thing about the harm of smoking is not the immediate harm of a cigarette, but the continuous "erosion" day after day, year after year. Unconsciously, the function of the brain gradually declines and becomes less and less flexible; The intestinal environment is also getting worse and worse, like a dirty and messy "garbage dump". It is not until the onset of the real disease and the severe symptoms of the body that the seriousness of the problem is realized, but at this time it is often a heavy price. Brain response is slow, memory loss, intestinal dysfunction, eating is not fragrant, and the stomach is often uncomfortable, how can you live a comfortable and stable life?

Therefore, smoking every day is not the lungs that cause the most damage. The lungs are like the "shields" standing in front, while the brain and intestines are the "victims" who suffer silently behind the scenes and are ignored by us. A truly sensible person is able to wake up and realize the dangers of smoking before the body has obvious symptoms. Don't wait for your body to ring the alarm bell before you regret it. Smoking, if you don't quit it, sooner or later it will make you suffer. Taking action now and putting down the cigarette in your hand is a smart way to protect your future health.

[This content is a story-based medical and health science article, and any name, place name, or event that appears in the article except for the health science content is artistic processing, and it is not intended to offend or belittle any individual, group or organization. If there is any similarity, it is purely a coincidence, please read it rationally. 】

Proofread by Zhuang Wu