Smoking and your heart

• The causal associations between cigarette smoking and human diseases are irrefutable. 
• Smoking has been estimated to cause about 11% of all deaths due to cardiovascular disease. 
• Smoking contributes to the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease and sudden death through a variety of mechanisms, including the promotion of atherosclerosis, the triggering of coronary thrombosis, coronary artery spasm, and cardiac arrhythmias, and through reduced capacity of the blood to deliver oxygen. 
• Smoking cessation also confers substantial benefits on people with serious heart disease. 
• Smoking cessation should be viewed as therapeutic rather than preventive intervention, similar to treating asymptomatic hypertension. 
• Smoking cessation is highly cost-effective relative to other frequently used medical and surgical interventions.