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Ban Smoking in All Public Places

-Smoking has been recorded as far back as 5000 B.C.What began as part of religious rituals has today become one of the widest used drugs for pleasure. -The American Lung Association states that more than 438,000 people in the United States die each year from diseases caused by tobacco. -Smoking has been linked to a higher risk of many diseases including: -pneumonia -lung cancer -throat cancer -mouth cancer -respiratory disease -The smoking statistics are alarming. -The Surgeon General believes that we will spend $75 billion on smoking-related diseases each year. -Smokers lose between 13 and 14 years of his or her life because of the harmful effects of their habit. -Environmental smoke often times referred to as secondhand smoke is also very harmful. -Secondhand smoke consists of sidestream and mainstream smoke. -Mainstream smoke is the smoke that is exhaled by the smoker -Sidestream smoke is the smoke that is given off by the cigarette as it burns. -Secondhand smoke contains many toxins and carcinogens. -The term carcinogen is used to refer to cancer promoting substances. -Secondhand smoke has been shown to increase the risk of lung, cervical, breast, and bladder cancers in those that do not smoke. -It has been proven that if a pregnant mother is subject to smoke the child will often times be born with a low birth weight. -The risk of asthma in a child is also greatly increased. -Respiratory problems also become big issues for children around smoke. -Even worse a higher risk of sudden infant death syndrome has been associated with smoking. -Environmental smoke claims many lives each year from the small babies to the elderly. Smoking should be banned in all public places because it is very harmful to the health of those who smoke. As you have heard on many commercials and seen in many advertisements smoking greatly increases a person’s risk of cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Smoking causes about 90% of lung cancer deaths in men and almost 80% of lung cancer deaths in women.” Death risks from lung cancer are increased 23 times by male smokers and 13 times by female smokers. It also amplifies a user’s risk of cardiovascular diseases. Smokers are at a higher risk of stroke, coronary heart disease, and circulation problems. Chances of respiratory disease are also greatly increased. Many who smoke will also find that smoking can damage their reproductive systems. Smoking causes many irreversible, harmful health issues to the smokers. On top of the fact that smoking is hazardous to the person smoking, the secondhand smoke is dangerous to others. For this reason smoking should be banned in all public places. A mother who smokes or is subject to second hand smoke while she is pregnant increases the risk of a low birth weight baby and even worse a stillbirth. Secondhand smoke increases children’s risk of respiratory problems and even slows the growth of their lungs. Environmental smoke can cause heart disease and lung cancer in non-smokers. According to the CDC, in a ten year period the level of cotinine was halved in non-smokers. Cotinine is measured as a marker for the amount of nicotine that is metabolized by the body. The secondhand smoke can be very irritating for those who don’t smoke. Also secondhand smoke can increase the chance of cancer in others. The smoke is very harmful to children. It greatly increases their risk of respiratory problems. Lastly smoking should be banned in public places because the toxins pollute our environment. There are many toxins that are released into our environment every time a smoker exhales and sits with a smoldering cigarette. Some major toxins released are carbon monoxide, nicotine, ammonia, and formaldehyde. These toxins are very damaging to our environment. According to D.F. Weetman there are 88 milligrams of carbon monoxide, 490 milligrams of carbon dioxide, and 7.4 milligrams of ammonia released into our environment for every one cigarette that is smoked (195). Each one of these compounds is very hazardous. Formaldehyde which we all link to the embalming process of a dead corpse is also released at a rate of 5000 micrograms per cigarette (203). We have all been put into a situation where we are breathing in many toxins from smoking that are harmful and damaging to our health. Many smokers feel like the government is trying to make them stop. They feel like they are being treated like criminals. They feel like the government is infringing on their rights and personal choices. What the government is doing is taking the initiative to make the environment safer for those who do not have a choice. They have given the people who work in high risk environments a better opportunity at a healthier life. They are not saying that smokers can’t smoke only that they need to be aware of those around them. They need to understand that it is about making the world a healthier place. There is much research on the subject of smoking and people who smoke need to take this research to heart and not believe that it is just a way for others to control their life. The information is out there in vast amounts. If a person has any doubt it doesn’t take long to find a trustworthy source. The facts are that smoking is harmful to the smoker, environment, and non-smokers. If a person is too ignorant to take the time to research than they should not argue the information. Smoking should be banned in all public places because of its adverse affects on the smokers, non-smokers, and our environment. With highly reputable sources showing that the bans do make a positive improvement, we all need to do our part to make everyone’s life healthier. Works Cited Associated Press. “List of Smoking Related Diseases Expanded.” 27 May 2004. MSNBC 9 Apr 2008 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5077308/. Ferrence, Roberta, et al, eds. Nicotine and Public Health. Washington, DC: American Public Health Association, 2000. Leslie, G.B. and F.W. Lunau. Indoor Air Pollution: Problems and Priorities. Great Britain: Cambridge, 1992. “List of Smoking Bans in the United States.” Wikipedia. 9 Apr 2008. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 9 Apr. 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_smoking_bans_in_the_United_States . “Smoking.” Wikipedia. 9 Apr 2008. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 9 Apr 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoking. “Smoking and Tobacco Use.” 23 Jan 2008. CDC. 9 Apr 2008 http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/Factsheets/health_effects.htm. “Tobacco Control.” 2007. American Lung Association < http://www.lungusa.org/site/pp.asp?c=dvLUK9O0E&b=22937

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