Crack lung is a pulmonary condition that can occur in those who use large amounts of the narcotic crack cocaine. The illness typically causes fever, coughing, phlegm, intense pain, and bleeding from the lungs. Crack lung sometimes shows up as lung abnormalities on X-rays, though this is not always the case. It can cause severe inflammation and scarring of the lung tissue. The condition can lead to chronic lung damage and death.

The symptoms of crack lung are often likened to those of pneumonia or emphysema. They generally appear only after heavy use of crack cocaine. Symptoms will usually begin within two days of crack cocaine abuse. While its symptoms are similar to emphysema, crack lung is typically considered a more acute illness. While emphysema typically develops over years of smoking cigarettes or exposure to other airborne toxins, crack lung usually occurs quite soon after large amounts of crack cocaine are smoked.

Toxins make the tiny airways in your lungs swell. This can make your chest feel tight and can cause wheezing and shortness of breath. If you continue smoking, the inflammation can build into scar. Smoking a crack pipe can also cause burns and blisters on a person’s mouth, lips, or fingers, which could lead to permanent scarring or marks. Smoking crack can also cause permanent lung damage. Crack restricts the flow of oxygen to the lungs, and this can cause scarring in the lungs, trouble breathing, chronic cough, and pain. What is too is smoking CBD bad for your lungs widely known? With the non-harmful Substances uses is smoking CBD bad for your lungs already long-functioning Effectmechanisms. In doing so, it is the means for his hardly existing Side effects & the excellent Cost-Performancerelationship known. Furthermore is the provider pronounced credible.

Experts believe that the lung damage caused by smoking crack cocaine occurs because cocaine typically causes the narrowing of blood vessels. This narrowing can lead to sharp increases in blood pressure in the lungs. When large amounts of crack cocaine are smoked continuously over a prolonged period of several hours or more, the tissues of the lungs can begin to suffer from restricted blood flow. As a result, lung tissues may not receive the oxygen they need to function properly. Inflammation and, eventually, scarring can occur as a result of crack lung.

While lung tissue is generally considered difficult to damage irreparably, doctors usually stress that the tissue cannot recover once it is damaged. It may take some time for crack lung to lead to significant long-term lung symptoms, such as shortness of breath, wheezing, and reduced ability to exercise. Most medical experts agree that this window of time is much shorter than it is for emphysema, a condition in which the lungs are usually damaged by long-term tobacco smoking. Acute episodes may lead to death if not treated quickly.

When inflammation or scarring of the lung tissues occurs, crack lung may be suspected if the person is younger than about 50 years of age. That's because emphysema doesn't normally appear in people younger than 50, unless they possess a rare genetic anomaly. A history of crack cocaine use is usually considered an indicator of the condition. Lung function tests, MRIs, and X-rays are usually used to diagnose lung damage due to crack cocaine use.

• Smoking causes damage the lungs.
• Diseases associated with smoking are cancer, asthma and COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.)

By now, even heavy smokers know that their addiction to cigarettes is causing serious damage to their lungs. While we’ve heard the claim thousands of times, most of us don’t really understand specifically how smoking leads to damage in parts of the lungs. Below is an overview of the many ways in which smoking damages your lungs and leads to other health problems.

Types of Damage

Most of us know that cigarettes are full of additives but learning that they contain as many as 4,000 different chemicals can be shocking. According to a PBS special for kids, cigarettes can contain cyanide, formaldehyde, ammonia, lead, and all types of other nasty ingredients that should never be in our bodies. Their presence is the number one reason why smoking damages your lungs.

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Take tar, for example. Tar is added to cigarettes so they will have a better flavor. However, tar is sticky and once inhaled through the cigarette it sticks to the insides of our lungs. Carbon monoxide is also present in the smoke produced by burning cigarettes. When carbon monoxide is in our bodies, it enters our bloodstream and prevents red blood cells from carrying oxygen to the parts of our bodies that need it. As a result, we sometimes do not get sufficient oxygen supplies leading to health problems.

One of the most serious affects of these chemicals is they paralyze the cilia, which are the hairs lining the upper airways. Normally, the cilia and mucus work together to prevent infections from reaching your respiratory system. The mucus captures the bacteria, viruses, or other foreign invaders while the movement of the cilia pushes them away from the lungs. Smoking prevents the cilia from doing their job so much of that bad stuff ends up right in your lungs. This is the main reason why smokers are more likely to have respiratory infections.

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Additionally smoking can damage the alveoli (air sacs in the lungs) and can cause the narrowing of air passageways. Both make breathing more difficult for smokers.

Diseases Associated with Smoking

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Because of the ways smoking damages your lungs, as a smoker you would be at great risk of developing certain types of diseases: COPD, cancer, and asthma. COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and occurs when smoking (as well as other factors in smaller numbers of people) makes breathing more difficult. As the disease worsens, you may find yourself being short of breath after doing very little or nothing at all. COPD is a leading cause of death among smokers and can begin interfering with your quality of life at a younger age.

Since 1995, scientists have known without a doubt that smoking causes lung cancer. First, they identified an important gene known as p53 which played a protective role in the health of the cells. Second, they discovered that the carcinogens in the cigarette damaged the p53, leading to future mutations, and eventually the excessive cell growth that is the hallmark of all types of cancer.

Asthma is also connected to smoking but in a different way. While asthma is not caused by smoking, it can be triggered by the inhalation of secondhand or even firsthand smoke because the chemicals irritate the lungs leading to the narrowing of air passages and difficulty breathing.

The information supplied in this article is not to be considered as medical advice and is for educational purposes only.