May 31 is World Anti-Tobacco Day.
Tobacco is one of the important causes of morbidity and mortality in the world.
The active principle in tobacco, nicotine is a well known narcotic and has far reaching effects on the body.
Tobacco in any form is dangerous to health. When chewed as a habit, it causes a chronic irrtation of the mucus lining of the mouth leading to oral cancers. Tobacco chewing and smoking cause cancers not only in the mouth but also the esophagus (food pipe) and the stomach and lungs.
Nicotine is a vaso constrictor, leading to a reduction of blood supply to various organs. It causes a vaso constriction of the lining of the stomach wall which makes it vulnerable to insults from organisms as well as the acid in the stomach and produces gastric ulcers. It also causes a relaxation of the lower end of the stomach (the pyloric valve) and allows the alkaline bilious secretons to enter the stomach. This alkaline juice is an irritant and once again predisposes the person to gastric ulcers.
Nicotine constricts the blood vessels of the heart causng ishemia and leads to angina and heart attacks. Similarly it acts on the blood vessels of the limbs and can cause gangrene due to the vaso constriction.
The tobacco plant belongs to the same family of plants, the Solanaceae, that give us some of the poisons and narcotics like the deadly nightshade (Belladonna), Dhatura (Stramonium) and Henbane (Hyoscyamus). Fortunately it is not as poisonous as the afore-mentioned plants.
Homeopathy uses tobacco in a diluted and purified form to treat many illnesses. It has been used effectively to treat vertigo and sea sickness and also the pains of kidney stones, esp. of the left side.
Disclaimer: Daxa Vaishnav and Vijay Vaishnav are both MDs in Homeopathy from India and are Board Certified Classical Homeopaths (CCH) in the USA. They are licensed and registered homeopathic physicians in India and are not licensed physicians in the State of California. They provide services under Sections 2053.5 and 2053.6 of California’s Business and Professions Code, subject to requirements and restrictions. The nature of the services provided by them involves an interview to gather the information needed, analysis of this information, recommendation of a homeopathic remedy and assessment of the action of the remedy at follow up consultations. Their services are alternative or complementary to healing arts services licensed by the State of California, are therefore limited in scope, and not a substitute for medical supervision and advice. If you suspect you have a disease or health-related condition of any kind, you should contact your health care professional immediately. Please consult with a health care professional before starting any diet, exercise, supplementation or medication program.
Please note: A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by a good and qualified homeopathic practitioner is necessary to treat the complaints that appear due to any disease. The information contained on this site is general in nature and is not meant to substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other health care professional. None of the statements on this site are an endorsement of any particular product, or a recommendation as to how to treat any particular disease or health-related condition. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease.