TeenHealthFX - Answers - Smoking & Sports

Smoking & Nicotine / Question
Published: December 5, 1999

Dear TeenHealthFX,

How much do I have to smoke before it really effects my ability to play sports? Please email me back.

Signed: Smoking & Sports

Dear Smoking & Sports,

TeenHealthFX strongly advises against smoking cigarettes whether you are an athlete or not. If you are an athlete, smoking is certainly not recommended as people can't smoke cigarettes and stay at their peak athletic performance.

Smoking cigarettes causes many diseases and its effects on the body can be endless. Most importantly, it reduces your lung capacity and effects breathing, which are very important when exercising. Long-term smoking can cause deadly diseases, such as lung cancer and emphysema. Although quitting smoking can be very difficult, it's better to do it now while you are less addicted and haven't been smoking a long time! If you quit now, your body will most likely repair any damage that has already been done! By the way, cigarettes definitely cause bad breath and early skin wrinkling.

FX assumed your question was about cigarettes, but just in case you were asking about smoking weed - With marijuana, you may think you can play sports just as well, but research (and a lot has been done) shows changes in reaction time, depth perception, and judgment with only one full joint. The changes are small with only one joint but they are measurable. The problems are related to how much you are smoking; that is, the more you smoke, the more impaired you are. It may not seem like that at all when you're playing....or maybe it does.

If it's a team sport, it's really not fair to the rest of the team who are trying to win. It's not a smart thing to do.....trust us on that.

You asked TeenHealthFX to email you back. TeenHealthFX is not set up to email anyone back directly. This is an anonymous site, which means we do not get your email address and cannot identify you.

If you have a specific question that you would like to ask someone regarding any teen health issues and live in Northern New Jersey, please call the Adolescent/Young Adult Center for Health at (973) 971.5199. If you live outside of Northern New Jersey, please call your local teen health center.

Signed: TeenHealthFX