The idea that smoking can be harmful to your urinary tract may seem a bit strange at first, since your lungs and your kidneys are nowhere near each other in your body. But because of the way that substances circulate through your blood, toxic substances from cigarette smoke can reach your urinary tract quite easily, and they may be damaged as a result.
definition
What does the urinary system do?
The urinary system allows for the body to keep the chemicals and water in you balanced by working with the lungs, skin, and intestines -- all of which excrete wastes. The urinary system consists of two kidneys, two ureters, the bladder, two sphincter muscles, and the urethra. When we eat, the body takes nutrients from the food and uses them to provide energy.
The job of the urinary system is to excrete the waste product urea from the blood; urea is produced when foods containing protein are broken down in the body. Urea is carried in the bloodstream to the kidneys, which remove urea from the blood through nephrons, which are tiny filtering units. Urea, water, and other waste substances together form urine as it passes through the nephrons. From the kidney, two tubes called ureters transport the urine to the bladder. The bladder is a hollow muscular organ whose job it is to store urine until you are ready to go to the bathroom, at which time the urine passes outside the body via the urethra. Muscles called sphincters keep the urine from leaking.
Why is the urinary system important?
Without the urinary system, the waste product urea wouldn't be able to be exreted and would build up inside the body.
explanation
If you smoke a cigarette, harmful substances from the smoke are absorbed from your lungs into your bloodstream. These substances then travel through your bloodstream to all parts of your body, including your kidneys. It is the job of the kidneys to filter waste products and toxic substances out of the blood, so that they can be removed from the body. The kidneys filter out many tobacco smoke components and collect them in the urine. The urine -- now filled with harmful substances -- then goes into the bladder before it is excreted from the body. Thus, both the kidney and bladder are exposed to harmful substances from cigarette smoke, and they may be damaged as a result.
