Health Risks of Smoking Essay

According to “The Action of Smoking and Health,” every six seconds someone loses their life as a result of a tobacco related disease. It’s hard to realize how damaging cigarette smoking’s effect can be until you experience it first hand. It is almost certain that every one knows someone who is currently a smoker or was a smoker at some point in their life. For years smoking was the seen as the “cool” thing to do, it was how to “fit in.” There was no real emphasis placed on the dangers of this particular habit, and as a result, it became a world wide trend. In the past, technology and medicine were not nearly advanced enough to be able to determine just how harmful tobacco usage is. However, as we have made medical and

Cigarette companies use trends, age, culture, and other things to hook a person to their product. The companies mainly target teens because of their ignorance and teens who get addicted that young will likely be customers for life. Tobacco is promoted on almost every television network and 1/3 of adolescent experimentation with smoking results from the advertising. (Tobacco Free Broome and Tioga) Not only are cigarettes promoted on TV, but their promoted throughout everyone’s lifestyle. Maybe a role model you have, maybe one of your parents, or maybe a celebrity you enjoy following... any one of these people could smoke and the mindset of many is, “if they’re doing it, so can I”. Mike Magee smoked his first L&M cigarette when he nine years old, his parents smoked and kept cigarettes in the house and therefore they were accessible. He and his siblings said that learning how to smoke was

One of my first memories in the United States was taking a Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E) class. I was in sixth grade and a top student, as talking about drugs and alcohol and the way they affect us was fascinating to me. This is why, the following year, I volunteered to become a peer educator in Teens Against Tobacco Use (T.A.T.U). For a couple of years, I gave presentations to young students which included facts, demonstrations, and games, to spread the knowledge that tobacco is harmful and that staying away from smoking prolongs life expectancy and increases the quality of life. It should come as no surprise, then, that I consider myself a big proponent of staying tobacco-free and encouraging others to quit smoking as a great way to promote health. I remember watching my mom and sister as they took part in their nightly ritual of smoking a few cigarettes to unwind. “Did you know that a main component of cigarettes is used as rocket fuel?” I would ask them, as I opened the window and they stared back at me blankly. “We know, we know” was the answer every time. I knew that convincing them to quit was no easy task, but I was committed. Day after day, I proudly stated a new fact about the evils of smoking. Finally one day, they quit. At first, they attributed it to the cost. Since we had just immigrated to the United States, the cost of cigarettes was simply not something they could afford. I didn’t believe it. I proudly

Although it remains a large portion of the U.S’ economy, tobacco smoking can lead to a variety of diseases and disorders that affect the user. The effects of smoking tobacco not only affect the user but surrounding people as well: permanently destroying their lungs and children, increasing the chances of diseases and of cancer.

Cigarette contains different poisonous ingredients, and nicotine is the one that creates addiction and leads to different diseases. Smoking cigarette is one of the worst problems our world is facing and the main reason for this term to be stressful is its consequence. Cigarette can cause different diseases that can directly or indirectly lead to death; “tobacco use is responsible for nearly 1 in 5 deaths in the united states” (cigarette smoking). Most of the time this consequence highly exists on young smokers or victims can be affected by the consequence because they started smoking young. In the United States 18 is the legal age for smoking cigarette and people are still using this law, but it is now the right time for a

Many drugs are used, misused, and abused in American society today. Some of these carry stigma in the general population, forcing users into an underground drug subculture. Others are accepted and almost promoted under certain circumstances. Tobacco is one of those drugs. Tobacco will be discussed in the context of cigarette smoking. This is not to undermine the existence or danger of other forms of tobacco, but instead to have an exhaustive discussion of cigarette smoking and its societal impact. Cigarettes are a means of inhaling tobacco, where it enters the lungs and is absorbed through the blood vessels, traveling to the heart, from which it is finally pumped to the brain (Hogan, Gabrielsen, Luna, and Grothaus 2003:76). Cigarettes are detrimental to society because they not only affect the user who chooses to smoke; they impact people around them through second-hand and residual smoke. The damage done by cigarettes is not impossible to address. Successful prevention measures are already in place, but this paper intends to suggest other more direct measures, especially related to statutory regulations.

The Institute of Medicine found that children, who are born between 2000 and 2019, would suffer 249,000 fewer premature deaths and 45,000 fewer deaths from lung cancer, when the legal age to purchase tobacco is increased from 18 to 21 years old (atg.wa.gov 2016). Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S, which causes many chronic health complications such as heart disease, cancer, and lung disease (atg.wa.gov 2016). Raising the legal age to purchase tobacco products to 21 in Washington state will decrease the use later in adult life specifically, ages 15 to 17 who are targeted the most through tobacco companies due to their vulnerability and gives loyalty to a specific tobacco company from the addiction of nicotine. Needham, Massachusetts campaigned to raise the legal age to purchase tobacco products from 18 to 21 in 2005 and won. Results are already compelling, showing that between 2006 and 2012 Needham’s high school smoking rate dropped more than half among girls and boys (atg.wa.gov 2016). Given that nicotine can be such an addictive drug and be seen to be used as a coping mechanism, specifically ages 15 to 17 through their developing stages of life, needs to encounter harder access to get their hands on tobacco products. According to the Center of Disease Control, one in 13 Americans age 17 or younger alive today are estimated to die prematurely due to the effects of smoking (atg.wa.gov 2016). Raising the legal age to

Tobacco use by teens has been a problem in America for over 50 years, yet there are teens smoking today. At least 30 percent of adolescents use some form of tobacco. In fact, statistics reveal that the average age for first using tobacco is 13. Despite the incessant advertising and education on the dangers of tobacco use, teens still continue to smoke. So why to teens continue to smoke? Mainly because most of them do not know what long-term health issues it can cause.

Every year cigarette smoking is responsible for 500,000 premature deaths (Nugel), you do not want to be just another statistic, do you? America’s first cash crop was tobacco. That means that tobacco has been around for a really long time. It was not until 1865, though, that cigarettes were sold commercially. They were sold to soldiers at the end of the Civil War (Dowshen). From then, cigarettes spread like wildfire, and it was not until 1964 that anyone made a stand about the negative effects of tobacco and cigarettes. People start smoking for all different reasons, some to fit in and some to “escape”. Regardless, it is a horrible habit. 3900 children will try their first cigarette today. Amongst adults who currently smoke, 68% of them

Smoking cigarettes is something common all around the world and has been around for ages. Sometimes after a meal, with a cup of coffee, at a social event, hanging out with friends, working on cars, being stressed out, celebrating an accomplishment, being on a break at work, while having a drink, and being in a car on the way to work are all times where a smoker would smoke a cigarette. People that smoke seems to be everywhere you go. There is an estimated 1.1 billion people that smoke today. Some people only smoke occasionally and socially but for others it is a part of their everyday life. Although cigarette smoking is still a popular trend today, this act directly causes health and safety problems not only to the smoker, but to the people around them and the environment as well.

Advertising for tobacco is another source that cause teenagers smoke and adults smoke. Recently, tobacco companies have found new ways to promote their products to youth. They support their sporting events, concerts and movie. Many people favor idols or stars smoke in the movies and they seems very cool. And Teenagers are curious about imitation. Smoke containing nicotine acts as a stimulant to the brain. Nicotine in the bloodstream acts to make the smoker feel calm. In fact, nicotine is a lethal poison, affecting the heart, blood vessels, and hormones. Tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 chemical compounds. More than 60 of these are known or suspected to cause cancer. What is more, secondhand smoke can be harmful in many ways and it ruins thousands of non-smoking people, children's health. The US Surgeon General and the US Food and Drug Administration are among those who have examined the evidence and concluded that tobacco advertising does increase overall consumption. If we ban adverts on tobacco products, they will gradually lose their appeal, because they won't symbolize anything "cool", "smart" or "amazing". Tobacco products will become ordinary consumption goods and thus the number of young people who take up smoking in order to "be somebody" will decrease.

To make matters worse, the tobacco companies are making millions from teen smokers. Tobacco companies use advertising to manipulate both teens and adults. They present images that are hard to shake, even when you know the truth. Have you ever seen a cigarette ad where people are wrinkled, middle-aged or coughing and in the hospital dying of lung cancer? Of course not! In most ads, smokers are shown the way that teens would like to be: attractive and hip, sophisticated and elegant, or rebellious.

Attention getter: According to Tobacco-Free Kids, “about 400,000 people die from their own smoking each year, and about 50,000 die from second-hand smoke annually. Smoking kills more people than AIDS, alcohol, car accidents, illegal drugs, murders and

Tobacco; one of the most profitable products in history, an addictive substance, and a deadly killer. Smoking tobacco used to be a thing that was endorsed in American society. Now, with the new medical advances and knowledge, society has seen the side effects of smoking and how fatal it actually is. Teenagers have been one of the largest age groups that have been affected by smoking. After analyzing all possible reasons as to why teenagers would smoke while knowing it can affect their health, three possible reasons stuck out the most. Teenagers smoke despite knowing the health problems that originate from smoking because of peer pressure, an “invincibility” mentality, and seeing a role model or family member smoke.

For a country in our financial position the general health of Scotland is very poor. In some areas the average life expectancy is as low as 54 years old for men. A major cause of this is smoking. With the young in particular smoking is much more popular than it used to be. In October 2008, it was estimated that one third of 16-24 year olds smoke. This figure is at a 10 year high. In between the ages of 16-19 it is found that girls are more likely to smoke than boys.