Tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals, including at least 50 that cause, initiate or promote cancer such as tar, ammonia, carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen and benzopyrene.

Although the amount of chemicals in each cigarette is small, it is cumulative -- the amount stored in the body increases with each puff of a cigarette. There is a little bit of chemical in each cigarette puff, and there are over 10 puffs per cigarette. Over a year, at one pack of cigarettes a day, a smoker will inhale 73,000 puffs of dangerous chemicals.

Think about this; tobacco kills over 20 times more people than murder in the world. Tobacco companies products kill 36,000 people every month, and that is just the beginning...

Put a smile on your face!
Show off those pearly whites! As a non-smoker, you’ve got whiter teeth and sweeter breath. And that makes you more attractive – and more kissable!

Better Smell/Taste
Burgers taste better. Flowers smell sweeter. We’re not just blowing smoke: people who don’t smoke have a better sense of taste and smell than those who do. Feeling a little stuffed up? Snacks going down like cardboard? Quit now and show your good taste! you’ll come up smelling like a rose.

Higher. Faster. Stronger.
You want to run faster and longer. You want to win that BMX competition. You want to stay up all night dancing. And you can. Because you don’t smoke, you’ve got more energy than you know what to do with.

Lots of Loose Change
Hey big spender! Being a non-smoker means big bucks in your pocket. A pack a day adds up to more than $3500 a year. Ouch! Think of all the iTunes, XBox games and hot new shoes you could buy with that!

Be smart.
No one can say you’re getting soft. You know that nicotine constricts the arteries and blood vessels – and lowers testosterone levels. That’s just one more reason why you don’t smoke. Smart, man… smart.

• Lung cancer: Lung cancer is the leading cause of death due to cancer in Canada. Smoking tobacco is the single most important preventable cause of lung cancer, accounting for 85% of all new cases of lung cancer in Canada. Smoking causes genetic changes in the cells of the lung that lead to the development of lung cancer.
• Other cancers: Research shows that smoking tobacco can lead to respiratory and upper digestive tract cancers, particularly cancer of the mouth, throat (pharynx), voice box (larynx) and esophagus. Research also indicates that smoking tobacco is a contributing cause of leukemia and cancers of the bladder, stomach, kidney and pancreas. Female smokers are at greater risk for developing cervical cancer.
  
• Respiratory diseases: The respiratory diseases associated with smoking are often grouped together and referred to as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) that includes emphysema, chronic bronchitis and asthmatic bronchitis. Cigarette smoking connected to an increased risk of respiratory symptoms, including coughing, phlegm, wheezing and difficult or laboured breathing (dyspnea).
• Cardiovascular diseases: Cardiovascular diseases are diseases and injuries of the heart, the blood vessels of the heart, and of the system of blood vessels (veins and arteries) throughout the body and brain. Cardiovascular diseases caused by smoking include heart attacks and angina (coronary heart diseases), blockages in the legs (peripheral vascular disease), and strokes (cerebrovascular diseases).

Tar

8 mg

8 - 29 mg

Nicotine

1 mg

1 - 2.6 mg

Carbon Monoxide

9 mg

9 - 27 mg

Formaldehyde

n/a

0.035 - 0.13 mg

Hydrogen Cyanide

n/a

0.073 - 0.25 mg

Benzene

n/a

0.034 - 0.08 mg