Quit Smoking
For many years, smoking has been linked with lung cancer. Smokers also have an increased risk of heart disease and stroke. Of the 440,000 people in the United States who die from smoking related problems each year, up to 20 percent are cardiovascular related.

In posing health risks on the body's cardiovascular system, smoking causes long-term increases in blood pressure and heart rate. It also reduces cardiac output, coronary blood flow and the amount of oxygen that reaches the body's tissues. Smoking also changes the properties of blood vessels and blood cells, allowing cholesterol and other fatty substances to build up.

Quitting smoking not only reduces the risk of heart disease,  but also reduces risk of other illnesses, including lung disease, lung cancer, emphysema, stroke, and oral cancer.

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