IDENTICAL TWINS: Smokers and Non Smokers

NEW YORK (Web Desk) – Smoking is terrible for our health and is still the single largest preventable cause of death and disease in United States.

Almost half a million Americans get killed by smoking every single year.

But statistics aren’t persuasive enough for everyone – because numbers aren’t tangible in the same way that throat cancer is. That’s why the American Society of Plastic Surgeons have taken a series of photographs that pairs of twins together in which one of the twins carried a smoking habit and the other one did not. The effects are clear as day.

Smoker on the right

They may both love gingham, but only the one on the right likes cigarettes. The differences can be seen in the lines surrounding the eyes and the mouth.

Smoker on the left

The woman on the left has smoked 17 years less than her identical twin on the right. The differences are demarcated by the lines in her lips, lower lid bags and skin surrounding the chin.

Smoker on the right

The twin on the right smoked for 29 years. Note the wrinkles in her forehead and the big difference in her eyes.

Smoker on the right

While both of these men were smokers, the one on the left quit 14 years prior to taking this photograph. You can see what affects the additional 14 years had on the twin on the right.

Smoker on the right

Not only has the twin on the right been the smoker in the family, she’s also spent significantly more time outside over the course of her life, which has caused her skin to age differently. Again, note the lines around the mouth.

Smoking reduces vitamin A in the body, which is why smoker’s skin has a tendency to look less healthy.

Smoker on the left

These are the same twins, but they’ve switched sides. You can really see the difference in elasticity of the skin between them from this angle.

Which one is smoker?

If you guessed the one on the right, you’re totally wrong. The one on the left smoked half a pack every day for 14 years. The one on the right has never smoked.

Which one is smoker?

The one on the left is the smoker.

Photos courtesy: American Society of Plastic Surgeons