Quit or Die

Quit or Die
The consequences of smoking

Quit or Die
The consequences of smoking

Quitting cigarettes now can reduce your chances of health related problems and early death. The complications of smoking are the reasons I am against the production of tobacco products, and I believe the US government should ban the production of tobacco. Some people may argue that it is against the freedom of choice and will cause the loss of jobs, but is it worth the life of millions of Americans? Being a smoker myself, I’ve had many visits to the hospital with health related problems from smoking such as bronchitis and pneumonia. Although, the United States Congress has not enacted any federal smoking bans, it’s up to state and local criminal and occupational safety and health laws. ("Wikipedia.com," 2012) However, I think the US government should ban the production of tobacco because the health risks from second hand smoke (SHS), nicotine addiction, and economic costs.
The first reason the US government should ban the production of tobacco is that; people that are constantly exposed to SHS (second hand smoke) are at greater risk for developing health problems. “There are over 250 toxins and carcinogens in cigarette smoke. The risks of developing lung cancer, brain tumors, acute myeloid leukemia, incidence of heart disease, and benign respiratory diseases increase with the inhalation of sidestream smoke.” (Sidestream smoke, 2012) The chances of developing breast cancer and cervical cancer will also increase. While driving or sitting in the car you are exposed to SHS much more than in a room. Second hand smoke has fifty cancer causing chemicals which are inhaled by non-smokers. Smoking causes cancers to the esophagus, lungs, voice box, throat and mouth and helps develop cancers of the bladder, pancreas, cervix and kidneys. It also causes cardiovascular disease like heart disease, stroke and diseases of the blood vessels. ("Wikipedia.com," 2012) There are many other health related problems related to second hand smoking this is why the government should ban the production of tobacco; that way second hand smoke will no longer be a problem.
Secondly, tobacco production should be banned by the US government because nicotine addiction is the second-leading cause of death in the US. Nicotine addiction has a high rate of failure among individuals who attempt to quit smoking. “It meets the criteria of a highly addictive drug, in that it is a potent psychoactive substance that induces euphoria, reinforces its own use, and leads to nicotine withdrawal syndrome when it is absent.” (Lande, 2011) One of the major reasons for failure to quit smoking is due to the withdrawal symptoms; these symptoms can have a severe effect on the body. The common withdrawal symptoms are anxiety, irritability, depression, insomnia, and decreased heart rate. According to recent studies, as much as 75-80% of individuals who make an attempt to quit smoking fail. This brings an increased risk for individuals who have attempted to quit smoking to fall into a relapse and crave for more nicotine. Also, in some cases, the relapse is worse than the original nicotine addiction. Nicotine addiction is hard to kick; if the US government would ban the production, it would stop the ability to for smokers to continue smoking.
Finally, the economic cost of continuing the production of tobacco is estimated at $200 billion per year in the US. Healthcare costs and loss of productivity from death and illness contributes to this cost. Tobacco’s impact on the economy directly contributes partly to the nation 's debts.
If the government does not ban the production of tobacco, these estimates will only increase. “Cigarette smoking costs more than $193 billion (i.e., $97 billion in lost productivity plus $96 billion in health care expenditures).1 Secondhand smoke costs more than $10 billion (i.e., health care expenditures, morbidity, and mortality).” ("Centers for disease," 2012). If the government does not ban the production of tobacco these estimates will only increase and put us further into debt as well as kill more smokers and non-smokers from SHS. The government must step up and stop tobacco companies from harming its citizens and stop putting America into economic debt.
Some may argue that banning tobacco will cause loss of thousands of jobs and their freedom of choice will be compromised. “Not only has the ban infringed on the freedoms of citizens who live in the county, but many business owners have filed a lawsuit against the county government claiming that the smoking ban has severely hurt their establishments.” (Hemp, 2006) However, is it worth keeping the production of tobacco if it kills so many people in this country as well as worldwide? Yes, thousands of people will lose jobs, but millions will survive from not smoking. If the government bans the production of tobacco will people be upset and create illegal sales of tobacco product as they do with Marijuana or other drugs? Yes, but in years to follow people will laugh at how this country use to kill millions from tobacco use. I myself am a smoker and I have tried to quit however, the withdrawal symptoms are too strong and makes it hard for me to quit. If the government bans tobacco then I will not have a way to buy cigarettes and will be forced to stop. I believe it is the only way for many individuals to give it up. I think the government should stop relying on individuals to stop smoking on their own, because it will never happen as long as we continue to produce tobacco. This is why I believe our only option is for the government to take control and ban the production of tobacco.
In conclusion, if the government would ban the production of tobacco the health system wouldn’t have to spend so much money on health problems related to smoking. If tobacco was banned the death rate would decrease, second hand smoke would not exist, peoples smoking addictions will fade out, and it will improve the economy in the long run. Quit smoking now and you can reduce your chances of health problems and early death.

Reference page

References:

Centers for disease control and prevention. (2012, August 21). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/

Hemp, D. (2006, March 29). Collegiatetimes. Retrieved from http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/6760/government-smoking-ban-would-stomp-on-human-rights
Lande, G. R. (2011, August 2). Emedicine.com. Retrieved from http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/287555-overview

San Francisco Tobacco Free Coalition and the San Francisco Tobacco Free Project. (2006, june
30). Corpwatch. Retrieved from http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=4000

Sidestream smoke. In (2012). Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidestream_smoke Wikipedia.com. (2012, February 12). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_smoking_bans_in_the_United_States
Wikipedia.com (2012, December 16). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_smoking

References: Centers for disease control and prevention. (2012, August 21). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/ Hemp, D. (2006, March 29). Collegiatetimes. Retrieved from http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/6760/government-smoking-ban-would-stomp-on-human-rights Lande, G Wikipedia.com (2012, December 16). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_smoking