How does nicotine exposure affect cardiovascular health and cancer risk?

• A. Increases risk of hypertension, atherosclerosis, heart disease, and cancers due to carcinogenic chemicals and vascular effects.
• B. Reduces cancer risk by dilating blood vessels.
• C. Reduces risk of hypertension.
• D. Only affects lung function but not cancer.

Answer: (C)

Nicotine exposure harms cardiovascular health and raises cancer risk because it acts as a stimulant that drives the body to work harder: it increases heart rate and blood pressure and causes blood vessels to constrict. This combination places more strain on the heart and promotes hypertension, while the ongoing vascular stress contributes to the development of atherosclerosis. Tobacco smoke also contains many carcinogens that can damage DNA and promote cancer in various tissues, so the overall cancer risk rises with exposure. So the statement that nicotine exposure increases risk of hypertension, atherosclerosis, heart disease, and cancers due to vascular effects and carcinogenic chemicals best captures the real risks. The other ideas aren’t supported by how nicotine and tobacco affect the body: nicotine doesn’t reduce cancer risk or hypertension, nor does it simply dilate vessels or affect only lung function without increasing cancer risk.