Every time a cigarette is lit, it contributes to a global problem, one that has persisted for decades. Not only does it hurt the smoker, but it hurts the environment as well, both directly and indirectly. Smoking has been known to cause health problems, financial problems, and negative environmental impact on a global level.
Annually, every five deaths in US are related to smoking. How could smoking be so deadly? Lung cancer, bronchitis, emphysema, and pneumonia are just a few conditions that smoking can cause. However, not only does it affect the smoker’s health negatively, it also affects everyone else nearby, which is known as Second Hand smoking or passive smoking. Children especially are vulnerable since they are still growing and developing, and could have an increased chance of not only Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but also middle ear infection, asthma, pneumonia, and bronchitis.
Smoking is not only perilous to our health, but also to the environment we live in. Deforestation happens when we get rid of forests and woods, in this case to make room for planting Tobacco. Moreover, many developing countries burn wood to dry tobacco leaves. The wood they use that gets burned all come from the forest, which once again is another reason why deforestation happens. When deforestation happens, it hurts the plants available for forage and the animals that lived in the forest. Chemicals also get released into the ecosystem and into the air we breathe in during the process of growing, curing, and transporting tobacco. Back in 1995, the tobacco industry released an estimate of 2262 million kilograms every year, with an additionally astonishing waste of 209 million kilograms every year. Since then, the production rate has only increased!
Finally, smoking is very costly and can put a financial burden on us. Not only does it cost us to make it, it also costs our health care. Usually in the United States, $97 billion are lost from productivity, and $96 billion alone on health care! The Secondhand expenses are usually about $10 billion a year, $5 billion in medical care and $4.6 billion in lost wages. This cost doesn’t even count kids.
As you can see, smoking causes many negative effects on the lives of many. It is a problem, but as with all problems, steps can be taken to solve it. I suggest keeping children educated on the topic of smoking. Through this, we have already been able to dramatically decrease the amount of smoking in the world, and I believe that we can eventually bring an end to it altogether.
