Health Effects of Tobacco Use
Tobacco use has serious effects on the health of users. In fact, tobacco use remains the leading preventable cause of disease and death in the United States,1 leading to more than 480,000 deaths each year.
No tobacco product is safe. However, the health risks for different tobacco products exist on a spectrum, which is sometimes referred to as a “continuum of risk.” Combusted, or smoked, tobacco products - such as cigarettes - are the most harmful type of tobacco product. Non-combusted products - such as e-cigarettes and other smokeless tobacco products - generally have lower health risks than cigarettes and other combustible tobacco products.
Health Effects of Smoking
Cigarettes are responsible for the vast majority of all tobacco-related disease and death in the U.S. Smokers are exposed to a toxic mix of over 7,000 chemicals when they inhale cigarette smoke,2 the consequences of which can threaten their health in many ways.
Order Free Print Version | Download Infographic
If you or a loved one are among the 34 million U.S. adults who smoke cigarettes in this country9 and want to quit, there are resources to help you on your journey to living a smoke-free life.
COVID-19 and Smoking
Am I at risk for serious complications from COVID-19 if I smoke cigarettes?
Subscribe to CTP Email Newsletters
Stay up to date on tobacco product news and announcements from FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) by subscribing to our email newsletters.
Yes. Data show that when compared to never smokers, cigarette smoking increases the risk of more severe illness from COVID-19, which could result in hospitalization, the need for intensive care, or even death. Smoking cigarettes can cause inflammation and cell damage throughout the body, and can weaken your immune system, making it less able to fight off disease.
There’s never been a better time to quit smoking. If you need resources to help you quit smoking, the FDA has supportive tips and tools to help you get closer to quitting for good.
If I vape tobacco or nicotine am I at risk for complications from COVID-19?
E-cigarette use can expose the lungs to toxic chemicals, but whether those exposures increase the risk of COVID-19 or the severity of COVID-19 outcomes is not known. However, many e-cigarette users are current or former smokers, and cigarette smoking increases the risk of respiratory infections, including pneumonia.
In the Health Effects of Tobacco Use Section
Quitting Smoking and Other Tobacco Public Health Resources
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress. A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: US Dept of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2014.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS). A Report of the Surgeon General: How Tobacco Smoke Causes Disease: What It Means to You (Consumer Booklet). Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2010.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Smoking and Cardiovascular Disease (Fact Sheet). Atlanta, GA: US Dept of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2014.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Smoking and Cancer (Fact Sheet). Atlanta, GA: US Dept of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2014.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. National Diabetes Statistics Report. Atlanta, GA: US Dept of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2020.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Smoking and Diabetes (Fact Sheet). Atlanta, GA: US Dept of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2014.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Smoking and Respiratory Diseases (Fact Sheet). Atlanta, GA: US Dept of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health; 2014.
- Smoking during pregnancy. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/health_effects/pregnancy/. Updated January 8, 2014. Accessed April 17, 2015.
- Cornelius ME, Wang TW, Jamal A, Loretan CG, Neff LJ. Tobacco Product Use Among Adults — United States, 2019. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2020;69:1736–1742.