How to tell if someone smokes: 4 Signs Your Teen is Smoking

21.09.202329.06.2023 by alexxlab

Содержание

Signs Your Teenager is Smoking Cigarettes

Table of Contents

How To Know if a Teen is Smoking

Learn the signs of your teenager smoking cigarettes so you can guide them away from this dangerous habit early on.

Did you know that 90% of smokers begin using tobacco before the age of 19? It is a fact that most smokers start smoking cigarettes between the ages of 13-18. For this reason, it is good for parents to be on the lookout for signs their teen has started smoking. By staying on top of this, parents can guide their child away from acquiring a deadly habit.

Negative Health Effects of Smoking Cigarettes

There is good reason for parents to be concerned about their teen smoking cigarettes. Ample research has shown for decades just how risky smoking is to our health. The CDC reports that smoking is the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the U.S., Their data show that 480,000 deaths each year are related to smoking.

The adverse effects of smoking are cumulative. The health risks are well known with data that confirms how smoking can harm every organ in the body. Over an extended time, the damage compounds and can cause these long-term effects:

Harms lung development. There is evidence that shows that lung size and capacity are reduced in teens that smoke. Later in life, they are at risk of developing lung conditions, such as COPD, asthma, or emphysema.
Heightened risk of heart disease, cancer, and stroke. Smoking puts people at a higher risk of acquiring heart disease or having a stroke. The risk for cancer is very high. This includes cancer of the lung, mouth, tongue, and esophagus, in addition to other types of cancer.
Risks nicotine addiction. The earlier someone starts smoking, the greater their risk of becoming addicted to nicotine. Nicotine causes a sense of euphoria and relaxation. These effects are short-lived, which leads to compulsive (chain) smoking.

There are some telling data about the risk of becoming addicted to smoking. A study from UCSF showed that even just five cigarettes a day could cause a dopamine response in the brain. The study groups were shown images of cigarettes and images of pens, followed by an MRI.

The scans showed the smokers’ brains light up along neural pathways related to dopamine-releasing regions when viewing the cigarettes. In the nonsmoker group, this did not occur. This suggests that even a few cigarettes a day can start the addiction cycle in the brain.

Why Do Teens Smoke Cigarettes?

We can all recall how important it is to look “cool” during the teen years. The way that smoking is portrayed, as a cool adult behavior, can influence a teen to begin smoking. Also, peer pressure plays an outsize role in the choice to partake in smoking. Some teens may even smoke in hopes of controlling their weight.

Certain factors can increase the risk of teen smoking. These include:

They have parents, friends, or siblings who smoke.
They have access to cigarettes, as well as smoking areas offered at school and work.
They are not doing well in school, and are not engaged in school activities.
They use drugs or alcohol.

Cigarettes are not the only way that nicotine is delivered. Vaping has increased exponentially in recent years, causing teen cigarette use to drop. Also, smokeless tobacco and cigars are other means teens use to achieve the desired effects from nicotine.

Signs a Teenager is Smoking Cigarettes

What are the telltale signs parents can look out for in their teens? Aside from the obvious, like finding cigarettes in their room, backpack, or car, consider these signs:

They seem edgy. When someone becomes hooked on nicotine they will show signs of withdrawal. The teen may seem irritable, agitated, or angry, but after a short absence (when they smoke a cigarette) they’re calm.
They smell of smoke. The teen may reek of smoke. It may be clinging to their clothes, their hair, or their breath.
They cough often. Smoking can cause the throat to become dry and irritated. This can cause a chronic cough.
Their teeth become yellowed. Cigarettes can quickly cause staining of the teeth. The teen’s teeth may begin to take on a yellow tinge with ongoing smoking.

Is Vaping Nicotine Less Risky?

The practice of vaping is defined as using a battery operated electronic device to inhale vapors from a liquid substance. The substance can be a liquid form of nicotine or other substances that can be aerosolized into a mist and inhaled. Some choose to vape over smoking cigarettes because it is odorless, and have none of the tobacco byproducts that harm the lungs.

It turns out that vaping liquid nicotine can still harm the lungs. Harmful chemicals have been detected in vaping products. These have been shown to cause permanent lung damage.

The concentrated levels of nicotine in the liquid products are risky as this can cause blood pressure to spike. Also, vaping nicotine can open the door to vaping THC products, with all the risks that go with that.

What to Do if Your Teen is Addicted to Nicotine

If a parent becomes aware that their teen is addicted to nicotine, there is help available. There are teen-focused rehab programs that can help the teen overcome the addiction. Programs are offered in outpatient settings where the teen will engage in a series of classes, group therapy sessions, and one-on-one talk therapy.

Sometimes the teen will have added issues, such as a substance use disorder or a co-occurring mental health disorder. If so, he or she may benefit from a higher level of care. A residential program for teens will provide a broader scope of therapeutic techniques and activities. These programs will also create a custom treatment plan, and offer academic support as well.

Are there signs that your teenager is smoking cigarettes? If so, do not ignore the problem. Steer your teen away from this dangerous habit with the help of a mental health expert.

BNI Treatment Centers Provide Residential Mental Health Treatment for Teens

BNI Treatment Centers is a residential mental health and dual diagnosis treatment program for teens. BNI is a doctor-owned treatment program and is tailored to the specific needs of teens. If your teen has become addicted to nicotine products, give BNI a call today at (888) 522-1504.

BNI Treatment Centers | Mental Health Treatment Center for Teens

Physician Owned & Operated

Primary Mental Health | Behavioral Issues | Dual Diagnosis

Mental Health Treatment Programs for Adolescents (12-17)

Our mental health treatment center for teens offers residential treatment (RTC) partial-hospitalization program (PHP), intensive outpatient program and therapy. BNI is dedicated to empowering teens who are struggling in various facets of their lives due to their specific conditions or issues. The treatment team develops individualize treatment plans to overcome these challenges to get their lives back on a positive trajectory.

The compassionate clinical team at BNI recognizes the unique struggles associated with the teen years that may culminate in social problems, high-risk behaviors, mood disorders such as anxiety or depression, or legal problems. The BNI clinical treatment team works with the teens using the treatment modality that is best suited to treat their unique condition or issues.

The residential and outpatient therapy programs at our mental health treatment center for teens encompasses all treatment elements, including individual and group therapy, family therapy, nutrition, and experiential therapies. BNI utilizes evidence-based approaches, those treatment modalities that have been scientifically tested and proven to be effective, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), mindfulness-based therapy (MBCT), psychodynamic therapy, and solution focused brief therapy (SFBT).

Read BNI Treatment Centers Reviews

Teen Mental Health Treatment Programs

On-Site Academic Support

Conditions Treated

Healing and Recovering Together

Parent & Family Support

At our mental health treatment center for teens, we understand how difficult this time is for the parents and families of a struggling teen. Our therapeutic and clinical team will provide therapeutic support and guidance for the family unit during the entire process.

Treating Underlying Conditions

What Makes BNI Different

Behavioral Neuroscience Institute (BNI) Treatment Centers was founded and is operated by two physicians with expertise in addiction and psychiatry, offering the highest level of care available. The program is also CARF accredited, ensuring that industry standards of excellence are provided at BNI Treatment Centers.

LEARN MORE

PreviousNext

12345678910111213141516

Safe & Monitored Environment

Our Teen Treatment Facilities

BNI Treatment Centers for Teens is located in private locations in Agoura Hills and Calabasas in Southern California. The BNI residential and outpatient treatment facilities are top of the line, luxury accommodations set in a safe and secured locations. Your teen will be cared for with the highest standard of care, including meals, amenities, and an expert staff and nursing that is available 24/7 when is residential treatment.

VIEW FACILITY TOUR

What We Treat

Meet Our Doctors

Arastou Aminzadeh, M.D.

Dr. Arastou Aminzadeh or Dr. A as most teens refer to him, has been working in variety of clinical settings for the last 20 years. He is well respected nationally for his expertise in Addiction medicine and treating adolescents. Dr. A is a triple board certified physician in psychiatry, Child and Adolescent psychiatry and Addiction medicine.

Oliver Ahmadpour, M.D.

Dr. Oliver Ahmadpour is an adult and child psychiatrist with nearly four decades of experience in the field of medicine with an M.D. degree from Sweden, where he practiced as an Internal Medicine physician. In the U.S. he completed his Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Endocrinology at UCSD, and his Residency and Fellowship in Adult, Child, and adolescent Psychiatry at USC Keck School of Medicine.

MEET OUR TEAM

Approved Training Facility

Continuing Education Provider

INSURANCE ACCEPTED

We Currently DO NOT Accept Medi-Cal, Medicare, IEHP, Kaiser or Government state/county funded health insurance.

Call

1-888-522-1504 or fill out our form

VERIFY INSURANCE NOW

CALL US

888-522-1504

EMAIL

info@bnitreatment.

com

LOCATIONS

Agoura Hills, Los Angeles, CA

Calabasas, Los Angeles, CA

SERVING

BNI Treatment Centers is located in Southern California in Agoura Hills and Calabasas near Los Angeles and Ventura counties. BNI Treatment Centers serves clients from California, all 50 states, and around the world.

SEARCH

State of California

Department of Social Services

Licensed by the Dept of Social Services Community Care Licensing Division
Facility #198209620
Dr. Aminzadeh Certificate #A92270

Several ways to identify a smoker

Life hacks

How to identify a smoker?

Photo: Getty

How to identify a smoker: the characteristics of smokers

And although smokers believe that they cleverly manage to hide their bad habit, this is far from the case. After all, they all have a number of characteristic features that reveal their little secret.

· Teenagers consider themselves adults when they start smoking. And indeed, over time, they will begin to look much older. Nicotine negatively affects the skin, because instead of oxygen, a portion of smoke enters the body. Therefore, the epidermis acquires an undesirable yellow tint, multiple wrinkles appear on the face, and the cheeks become sunken.

Most smokers cough. Such a cough is similar to bronchial, but it is not accompanied by other symptoms of the disease. Usually, attacks begin in the morning, and gray sputum is released from the oral mucosa. A cough may not go away over time, but quickly disappears after a person stops smoking.

· If you want to know how to identify a person who smokes, then attention should be paid to his smile. With prolonged smoking, the teeth become covered with plaque, and the gums become inflamed. In addition, bad breath can come from the mouth, which is hidden by chewing gum.

Middle and index fingers become yellowish due to exposure to nicotine smoke.

· A person cannot sit still because he wants to smoke. He can fiddle with small objects in his hands to distract himself.

How can you recognize a smoker?

If there are suspicions that the husband smokes, then most likely it is so. But it needs to be checked anyway. To do this, do the following:

1. Look at his face. If recently the skin has noticeably lost its elasticity, changed color, then the person smokes.

2. You need to look at the hands of the “suspect”. If a yellowish coating appears on the nails and fingers, and the skin becomes rough and unpleasant, then he has a bad habit.

3. It is advisable to examine all the husband’s clothes. If he started smoking, then there may be scorch marks and burnt places on things.

4. Smell well. After all, even if the smoker tries to hide the smell of cigarettes, he will still remain. His hair, clothes, hands can smell unpleasant. Feels bad breath.

How can you tell if a child smokes?

Photo: Getty

Does the child smoke?

For any mother, the question of how to determine whether a child smokes is an urgent one. After all, modern children join this bad habit in order to assert themselves, to feel older. And many people start smoking at the age of 11-12. Therefore, it is important to prevent the child from becoming a heavy smoker in time.

Some women tell their child to “breathe” and, not smelling tobacco, calm down. But children are not so stupid, so they know how to disguise themselves well. They chew gum, coffee beans, or bay leaves.
Therefore, you need to ask the child to breathe into an empty jar. In this case, a slight smell of tobacco smoke may be felt.
Often the smell remains on the hands. Even if you rub them with lemon zest, the cigarette flavor will remain.
You just need a good sniff.
The child’s belongings should also be examined. Perhaps a few grams of tobacco will remain at the bottom of the backpack or pockets.

If you cannot determine whether your son smokes on your own, then you need to go to the dentist. The doctor will quickly tell if he has a tobacco addiction. Sometimes children say that they themselves did not smoke, but simply were next to smokers. This really happens. But if the smell occurs regularly, then it is worth checking whether the son is telling the truth. As a rule, the aroma of cigarettes lasts about 1.5 hours on the hair, and 1 hour in the mouth.

Is it possible to make a child stop smoking

Children often smoke to appear cooler and older. In this case, you need to explain to the child that this is not an option. It is better to find a job to become an adult. So he will understand how hard money gets, so he will not spend it on all sorts of nonsense.

But girls very often smoke in company.

Therefore, if your daughter has dubious girlfriends, she should be forbidden to communicate with them.
You can give her some kind of ultimatum or find a compromise.
A girl must understand that in the future she needs to become a mother, and because of smoking, various diseases can appear that lead to infertility.

Thus, it is easy to determine whether a person smokes or not. But if there is a goal – to help him get rid of such a habit, then you need to understand that this is not easy to do. After all, he should have not only awareness of the harm from cigarettes, but also willpower.

Revision Wday.ru

Biochemistry of a smoker

— “Mom, I didn’t smoke, I just stood next to the guys!” – “Yeah, did the guys express the LRRN3 gene for you too?”

According to the World Health Organization, smoking is still one of the main threats to human health, and nicotine addiction is considered very severe. On the packs of cigarettes, frightening illustrations of the possible consequences of smoking “scream” about the danger. However, what actually happens at the molecular level in the body after inhaling cigarette smoke? About what is contained in cigarettes and tobacco smoke in addition to nicotine, as well as ways to calculate a smoker, tells N + 1 .

This article N + 1 continues the “When the smoke clears” project. It is dedicated to smokers, nicotine, ethical, biochemical and anthropological aspects of smoking practices, as well as the fundamental science that is associated with this phenomenon – toxicology, open data issues and much more. The project was prepared with the support of Philip Morris International in Russia. The opinion of the authors of the articles may not coincide with the position of the company.

Anagram game – nicotine, cotinine…

During smoking, smoke particles deliver nicotine to the lungs, where it is quickly absorbed, that is, absorbed into the bloodstream, and enters the pulmonary circulation. Next, nicotine enters the systemic circulation and so ends up in the brain, where it binds to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, which usually bind the mediator acetylcholine. Stimulation of these receptors results in the release of the neurotransmitter dopamine.

Dopamine is an integral part of our brain’s “reward system” and is released in large quantities during pleasurable events – even when eating delicious food. As a result, a person again and again feels the desire to repeat the action that in the past led to the release of dopamine. And thus, the binding of nicotine to the receptors of dopaminergic neurons (releasing dopamine) is an important step in the development of smoking addiction, described in more detail earlier in another article within the framework of the When the Smoke Clears project.

Most of the nicotine ingested by a smoker is metabolized in the liver to cotinine, which is structurally very similar to nicotine. Despite its similarities to nicotine, cotinine has a number of features that allow it to be used as a biomarker for the effects of smoking, a substance whose concentration in human biomaterial can indicate whether a person smokes or not. An important characteristic of a biomarker is its half-life – the time during which the substance loses approximately half of its pharmacological action. Nicotine has a relatively short half-life (about 10-11 hours), while cotinine has a longer half-life (about 17-20 hours) and can be detected for several days after nicotine intake.

Levels of nicotine and its metabolite, cotinine, can be measured in blood, urine, saliva, and hair and nails. Urinalysis is one of the most convenient methods due to the fact that it is a non-invasive test, but measurements of nicotine and cotinine in hair and saliva can provide a more accurate identification of a smoker (including a passive one). Despite their relative accuracy, nicotine and cotinine tests are still based on only one component of cigarettes, and their results can vary greatly depending on the individual. In addition, such biomarkers do not provide insight into biochemical changes within the body in response to cigarette smoke.

11 friends of nicotine

An analysis of the transcriptome, a set of mRNA (ribonucleic acid) molecules formed as a result of gene transcription, can help determine the status of a smoker more accurately. It is important that such markers be highly specific and sensitive regardless of individual characteristics of the person, differences between laboratories in which studies are carried out, and methods for extracting nucleic acids.

Philip Morris International researchers identified 11 markers based on gene expression levels using big data analysis: LRRN3, SASh2, PALLD, RGL1, TNFRSF17, CDKN1C, IGJ, RRM2, ID3, SERPING1, FUCA1. It turned out that with the help of them it is possible not only to determine with high accuracy whether a person smokes, but even to distinguish a person who has never smoked from a former smoker.

Prior to research involving volunteers, most of the testing is carried out on laboratory animals, as human testing is associated with more stringent regulation of the ethical and legal aspects of research. In addition, laboratory model organisms are distinguished by relatively fast life cycles and the development of pathologies, which makes them more convenient to work with.

The study was carried out on laboratory mice, some of which were exposed to cigarette smoke for seven months, some imitated smoking cessation (after two months of exposure to cigarette smoke, the mice again breathed filtered air), and the rest of the mice were healthy – they were shielded from tobacco smoke. It turned out that six of the 11 genes are universal for both humans and mice, and with their help it was possible to form a fairly accurate profile of the expression of the smoker’s genes.

Toxic Companions

Genetic expression testing of a smoker is not yet a ubiquitous test, but research in this area is underway, and perhaps in a relatively short time such a test will be available to everyone. But the studies related to the study of the effect of smoking on the body are not limited to assessing the level of nicotine and cotinine – some other components of cigarette smoke are also measured along with the study of a number of biochemical parameters of the body.

First of all, along with tobacco smoke, the smoker inhales carbon monoxide. For humans, carbon monoxide is toxic – because of it, people most often get serious poisoning or even die during fires. Normally, hemoglobin binds to oxygen and carbon dioxide and, carrying them in the blood throughout the body, thus ensures the process of respiration. In the presence of high concentrations of carbon monoxide, a complex between hemoglobin and oxygen (oxyhemoglobin) cannot form, since the bond between carbon monoxide and hemoglobin is irreversible, and their complex, carboxyhemoglobin, is much stronger. As a result, oxygen transport and cellular respiration are disrupted. Smokers have elevated levels of carboxyhemoglobin. Already at a ten percent level of carboxyhemoglobin in the blood, a person may experience severe headaches and nausea.

Nicotine is the main alkaloid in tobacco, but there are several other alkaloids in addition to it. The most common of these are nornicotine, anatabine and anabasine. It is believed that most of these alkaloids are formed either during the activity of bacteria or during the processing of tobacco. These compounds are responsible for the formation of tobacco-specific N-nitrosamines, chemically stable compounds with carcinogenic and mutagenic effects. The most common N-nitrosamines in tobacco are 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK), N’-nitrosonornicotine (NNN), N’-nitrosoanatabine (NAT), N’-nitrosoanabasine ( NAB), 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol (NNAL) and some others. Nitrosamines can be found in some cosmetics and even foods, but their content in cigarettes and tobacco smoke is much higher. As carcinogens, nitrosamines in the human body can contribute to the development of cancer.

In addition to N-nitrosamines, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), organic compounds consisting of two or more aromatic rings of carbon atoms, also have carcinogenic and mutagenic effects. PAHs are formed from the incomplete combustion of many naturally occurring organic substances, such as oil, wood or tobacco, and are found throughout the environment. Several hundred different PAHs are found in tobacco smoke. These compounds in the air are, as a rule, part of complex mixtures. With this in mind, benzo[a]pyrene is most often used as a single indicator to assess the degree of air or body pollution with PAHs. This PAH is the most well studied and is one of the most powerful carcinogens among the other compounds of its series.

The negative effects of smoking are often considered not only in the context of the potential threat of developing cancer, but also in the case of the development of cardiovascular diseases. Often this is due to a violation of lipid metabolism in the body. The development of atherosclerosis can be greatly enhanced by abnormal lipid and lipoprotein profiles in blood plasma. Cholesterol is involved in many processes – it is both a precursor for the synthesis of certain hormones, and a component of cell membranes, and bile acids are formed from it, due to which the breakdown and absorption of fats in the intestine is carried out. However, with an excess of cholesterol in the blood, it can be deposited in the walls of the arteries, which leads to the formation of plaques that prevent normal blood flow. Normally, this does not happen due to lipoproteins. By itself, cholesterol is insoluble in water, so for transport through the body it binds to special proteins – apolipoproteins.

Such a complex between cholesterol and apolipoprotein is lipoprotein. Depending on the proportions of the components included in the complex, several types of lipoproteins are distinguished – high density lipoproteins (HDL), low density lipoproteins (LDL) and very low density lipoproteins (VLDL). It is thanks to HDL that the processing and removal of excess fats from the body is ensured. At low concentrations of HDL, excess cholesterol does not have time to be excreted from the body in time and can accumulate in the form of plaques, which we mentioned earlier. LDL, on the contrary, are the main carriers of cholesterol in the body and their high concentrations can contribute to the development of atherosclerosis.

Studies aimed at studying the effect of smoking on the development of cardiovascular diseases are often carried out on ApoE -/- lines of mice. These mice are unable to express the ApoE gene, which produces apolipoprotein E, a glycoprotein essential for lipid transport and metabolism. ApoE -/- mice have congenital hypercholesterolemia (high blood cholesterol) and, as a result, are particularly prone to the development of atherosclerosis.

Prolonged exposure to cigarette smoke in ApoE -/- mice resulted in an increase in most blood lipids and the development of atherosclerotic plaques. Also, exposure to cigarette smoke elicited an inflammatory response in mouse lung cells characterized by higher expression levels of alveolar macrophage activation markers CD54 (ICAM1), CD86, and CD11b. With the cessation of exposure to cigarette smoke, the inflammatory response was attenuated, and the progression of atherosclerosis was reduced.

In addition to a wide range of different organic compounds, many heavy metals are also present in tobacco smoke. In cigarettes, the combustion temperature of tobacco can reach values of the order of 900 degrees Celsius. At such high temperatures, many metals and their compounds in the form of an aerosol, together with tobacco smoke, can enter the body. Cations of metals such as mercury, lead and cadmium are able to covalently bind to the thiol group of cysteine, an amino acid that is part of the active centers of many enzymes. Such a connection with the enzyme is likely to interfere with the normal implementation of its biological functions, which, as a rule, leads to serious metabolic disorders.

Pro alternative

It is important to note that the content of the above substances is highly dependent on the nature of the smoke. For example, in preparation for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games (eventually postponed due to the coronavirus), a study was conducted on the differences between conventional cigarette smoke and electric tobacco heating system (ETS) aerosol. The content of the main N-nitrosamines characteristic of tobacco, NNN, NAT, NAB, and NNK, in the ESSNT aerosol was analyzed. It turned out that both in the tobacco section of the stick used in ESSNT and in the aerosol of nitrosamines, there are significantly less nitrosamines than in conventional cigarettes. The HHST aerosol contained only one-fifth of the nitrosamines compared to the smoke of classic cigarettes.

In the previous section, we mentioned that the combustion temperature of tobacco in an ordinary cigarette can reach 900 degrees Celsius. In ESNT, the heating mechanism provides for temperatures no higher than 350 degrees Celsius. It has been shown that due to this, the content of carbon monoxide in the composition of the aerosol from ESLT was reduced by 100 times compared with the smoke from a conventional cigarette.

Numerous studies, including those conducted by US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) laboratories, confirm the reduction of HHP aerosol concentrations of many harmful and potentially harmful smoke constituents in addition to carbon monoxide, such as acrolein, formaldehyde, benzopyrene, and more. dozens of substances. The average decrease in concentrations for this list of substances was more than 90 percent compared to the smoke from a regular cigarette.

Although there are significantly fewer compounds that are toxic to humans in HHST aerosol, tobacco heating systems are not harmless and do not eliminate risks.

Participants in randomized trials around the world report that they do not feel much difference between the use of ESS and regular cigarettes in terms of enjoyment of the process and its “rituality”. This is explained by the fact that in both cases, comparable amounts of nicotine, as a rule, enter the human body. And its pharmacokinetic profile (that is, peak concentration and the rate at which it is reached) is comparable to that obtained from smoking a traditional cigarette.

However, it is also important that in addition to subjective sensations, a number of biochemical parameters in smokers improved significantly when switching to the use of a tobacco heating system. In the course of randomized trials, indicators such as the level of leukocytes in the blood (indicator of inflammatory processes), forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), levels of carboxyhemoglobin, HDL and carcinogenic N-nitrosamines, and the degree of oxidative stress were evaluated.

Statistically significant reductions in blood carboxyhemoglobin and leukocyte levels, an increase in HDL levels, a decrease in all tobacco N-nitrosamines, a decrease in oxidative stress, and higher FEV1 values were observed when switching from cigarettes to ESLT compared with regular cigarette smokers.

Cigarette smoke accelerates the adhesion of leukocytes to the endothelium, the cells that line the inner surface of blood vessels. The adhesion and transmigration of leukocytes across the vascular endothelium is an important step in the development of several cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis mentioned earlier. The aerosol of ESLT does not cause such strong changes in the adhesive properties of the endothelium compared to cigarette smoke.