Smoking Is Bad

Smoking is Bad!
According to the American Lung Association, there are estimated 50 million people who smoke. Smoking kills more people than any other disease in the world, 5.4 million death in 2004 and more than 100 million over the twentieth century. However, smokers do not fully understand the risks they take by smoking. It affects a person physically and mentally, economically and socially.
First of all, smoking affects a smoker physically and mentally. Nicotine in cigarettes or cigars is a highly addictive substance. The tar and carbon monoxide in cigarettes increase a smoker’s risk of heart diseases, brain tumors and lung cancers. According to North East Valley Division General Practice, a risk of a stroke is 25 percent likely to occur in male smokers. The nicotine increases cholesterol levels in smokers’ bodies. Men who smoke are also ten times more likely to die from lung cancer than non-smokers. Smoking is harmful to the respiratory and circulatory systems. It causes high blood pressure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and diabetes. A person’s appearance is changed when smoking. A smoker’s skin, nails and teeth are stained and his breath is stink like smoke. For female smokers, their cervix, and uterus are vulnerable to cancer. They might also develop fertility difficulties. For pregnant female smokers, it incurs premature birth, miscarriage and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Inhalation of tobacco smoke by nonsmokers has been found to increase the risk of heart disease and respiratory problems. On top of it all, smoking affects our next generation. Children who are
Nguyen 2 living in the same house with parents who smoke have a higher risk of asthma, bronchitis and allergies.
Smoking can be economically expensive for an individual as well as a society. A pack of cigarrettes is sold around six dollars depending on brand. However, the cost might be as high as to $41 per pack according to a study by a team of health economists. The number is based on tax, insurance, medical care and lost income due to smoking related disabilities. Smokers and their families have to pay around $33 for this costly habit. For the rest of this cost, a society bears more than seven dollars because of medical care and lost productivity. Ultimately, each tax payer burdens the cost of medical care for those smokers who become ill through smoking. The other incidental costs such as higher cleaning bills and lower resale values for smokers’ cars were not counted.
Beyond physical, mental, and economical effects, smoking can either have positive or negative impact on one’s social positions. Among smokers, smoking is a way to socialize and to begin a conversation. However, for a non-smoker, smoking is connected to bad breath, yellow teeth, smelly hair and clothes. Thus, it limits a smoker’s effective communication. The other social effect of smoking is on the next generation. Celebrities smoking on commercials or movies promote an association between smoking with glamour. In the past, famous smokers used cigarettes or pipes as part of their image, such as Winston Churchill for cigars, Albert Eistein for pipes, Sherlock Homes for pipes, cigarettes and cigars. Teenagers, who are susceptible to broadcast media, will think smoking is a sign of being grown up and try to imitate it.
Some countries have been imposed legal requirements on the packaging of tobacco products including United States. Each pack of cigarettes must be prominently labeled with health hazard associated with smoking. Many countries also have set smoking age. In United States, it is illegal to sell tobacco products to minors. Underlying such laws implies the smokers should make an informed decision regarding the risks of tobacco consumption. However, many smokers do not have complete scenario about the negative impacts of smoking on each individual and society. It is time now for each individual to understand how bad smoking is and how smoking could affect every smoker and families physically and mentally, economically and socially.