The cigarette industry has taken over a large portion of the world economy in the past decade. There has been a significant rise in the global population of smokers due to this quick expansion. There are three common reasons people smoke: relieve stress, reduce weight, or fit in with a specific social group. In other words, since cigarettes are so physically and psychologically addicting, individuals will spend whatever it takes to keep getting more of them, according to new research on the subject. Tobacco usage is a significant issue in today’s society. People of all ages are presently using tobacco products, and the number of dependent on the drug is growing. Smoking is more common among the elderly due to addiction than among youngsters, who see it as a symbol of freedom and maturity. Cigarettes damage almost every part of the human body, causing sickness and disability due to the damage done. Despite recent attempts to eliminate smoking, it remains the leading cause of disease, disability, and death in the US. More than 34.1 million adults in the United States already smoke, with 15.3 million males and 12.7% of women now doing so. In the United States, around 1,600 individuals under 18 begin smoking each day. Tobacco use has been linked to several health problems, and this research explores the difficulties that smokers have in giving up the habit.
Why smoking should be banned
There are so many health issues associated with smoking that it’s impossible to identify them all. It is the essential risk factor for adults and adolescents to control. Chronic and acute disorders alike may be aggravated or exacerbated by smoking. To educate people about the severity of COPD, the article on “Respiratory Disease and Respiratory Physiology” uses pathos. According to the findings, COPD, a common smoking illness, maybe prevented via smoking cessaed by smoking each year, and at least 41,000 of these fatalities are due to secondhand smoke exposure. This is why I think smoking should be banned since it poses a severetion (Berend). In this well-researched essay about COPD, a condition that is still mostly unknown, statements and support from well-known experts who specialize in the topic are included. To bolster his arguments, the author cites a slew of facts on the dangers of secondhand smoke-induced ailments, including COPD. These illnesses eventually lead to death. A different estimate of 556 000 adult deaths due to extra mortality from all sources is included in the study. At least 16 million people in the United States now suffer from a smoking-related illness. More than 30 persons are left with a significant smoking-related disease for every death caused by cigarette smoking (Berend). More than 4.8 million Americans are kill danger to your health, the environment, and your wallet.
Why do smokers find it difficult to quit smoking?
Smoking cessation is a difficult objective to attain. Even those who can control their urges might quickly go back into their destructive habits since there is always a trigger that forces them to return to their old ways. Some people believe they will die if they don’t smoke, even for an hour a day. Smoking is a lifeline for people dependent on it (Hopkinson). Even if you’re motivated to give up smoking, the fear of withdrawal symptoms might make you hesitate. Addiction to it is one of the most challenging things to break. Nicotine dependence may be challenging to break even after repeated tries. When you smoke, your body becomes dependent on the highly addictive chemical nicotine.
In the same way that heroin and cocaine are addictive, nicotine is also considered. To make cigarettes more addictive, the tobacco industry has tinkered with them. Logos says that nicotine, a stimulant, may momentarily reduce feelings of worry and sadness (Hopkinson). Tension and a desire to smoke arise as the brain’s nicotine levels drop between cigarettes. Because of the calming effect of the next cigarette, quitting smoking is tough. People who are more dependent on tobacco are more prone to begin smoking in the first place, as seen by this correlation.
What are the alternatives available?
Many individuals are convinced that vaping is the most excellent way to stop smoking cigarettes for good. Cigarettes have been shown to have a significant impact on health. Cigarettes not only harm the smoker but others around them as well. As a result, quitting smoking and switching to vaping will not end the cycle of addiction that started with smoking. Although vaping looks to be a viable alternative to smoking cigarettes, it still contains toxins found in tobacco products that may be hazardous to one’s health (Marton). Many individuals feel that vaping should be the first step toward quitting smoking, yet perspectives and ideas vary between vaping and cigarette smoking. The likelihood of a person effectively stopping smoking increases when they properly use nicotine replacement therapy. Prescription drugs may help smokers quit by easing withdrawal symptoms and increasing nicotine intake cessation.
How does tobacco use benefit the economy?
The expenses of tobacco use and the costs of lowering its prevalence among smokers are both parts of the economic effect of smoking. Smoking has far-reaching health and financial ramifications for people, families, businesses, and the government that go beyond the cost of the cigarettes themselves (Mundial). We may now classify tobacco-related expenses as direct, indirect, and intangible. Smoking’s direct expenses include the health care expenditures associated with treating people who have acquired ailments due to smoking (e.g., cost of drugs and administrative services). These include GP visits, medicine prescriptions, and other expenditures associated with treating smoking-related illnesses in the United Kingdom. It’s not only government institutions and philanthropic groups that eat up resources. Low-income countries with undeveloped income tax systems get a large portion of their revenue from tobacco excise taxes. Excise taxes on cigarettes are easy to collect since cigarette manufacturers are low (Mundial). Nine to eleven per cent of government income is generated by taxes on tobacco in some nations. Even tiny sums of government money may be worth billions of dollars in high-income countries. Tobacco regulation is commonly regarded as a danger to the industry’s profitability. However, for the time being, governments worldwide are counting on higher cigarette levies to help them fund their budgets.
How does tobacco use detrimental to the economy or health sectors?
Tobacco-related ailments have exceptionally substantial medical expenditures. Smoking results in an estimated $170 billion in yearly costs for public and private health care in the United States. The cost of smoking in the United States is around 1% of GDP. Smoking-related emergency and primary care visits for adults and children are also markers of health care spending (Ries). It has been projected that smoking costs Taiwan and Hong Kong an annual health-related cost of $397.6 million and $688.5 million for adults aged 35 and over, respectively.
Smokers in Taiwan spend an average of US$70 more per year on medical care than nonsmokers. Tobacco-related health care expenses in Hong Kong rose by 23 per cent in 2013, indicating an increasing incidence of passive smoking. Smoking everywhere is expensive in many ways, and it has a significant impact on the state’s budget. Smoking-related expenses account for most overall health care expenditures, with far-reaching consequences for the economy. Smoking during pregnancy, or “maternal smoking,” has other financial implications (Ries). Health care expenses for children and the general population are expected to rise significantly as a result.
In conclusion, More than 34 million adults in the United States smoke, with 15.3 million males and 12.7% of women now doing so. Around 1,600 individuals under 18 begin smoking each day. Smoking is more common among the elderly due to addiction than among youngsters, who see it as a symbol of freedom and maturity. At least 16 million people in the United States now suffer from a smoking-related illness. More than 4.8 million Americans are killed by smoking each year, and at least 41,000 of these fatalities are due to secondhand smoke exposure.
Smoking should be banned since it poses a severe danger to your health and the environment. Smoking has far-reaching health and financial ramifications for people, families, businesses, and the government. Smoking’s direct expenses include the health care expenditures associated with treating people who have acquired ailments due to smoking. Prescription drugs may help smokers quit by easing withdrawal symptoms and increasing nicotine intake cessation. Smokers in Taiwan spend an average of US$70 more per year on medical care than nonsmokers. Smoking costs Taiwan and Hong Kong an annual health-related cost of $397.6 million and $688.5 million. Smoking during pregnancy, or “maternal smoking,” has additional financial consequences. It is evident from the information provided by the articles above that tobacco use brings serious health issues to people. Therefore, those trying to quit smoking should seek better alternatives such as smokeless tobacco, while those who have never smoked should desist from smoking.
References
Berend, Norbert. “Respiratory disease and respiratory physiology: putting lung function into perspective interstitial lung disease.” Respirology 19.7 (2014): 952-959.
Hopkinson, Nick. “Why Is It so Hard to Stop Smoking?” British Lung Foundation,
2019, www.blf.org.uk/your-stories/why-is-it-so-hard-to-stop-smoking.
Marton, Hanna. “Cigarette Substitutes: How Safe or Effective Are the Alternatives to
Tobacco?”Healthdirect, Healthdirect,14Sept. 2021,https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/blog/cigarette-substitutes-how-safe-or-effective-are-the-alternatives-to-tobacco.
Mundial, Banco. “The Economics of Tobacco Use & Control in the Developing World.” Development Planning and Tobacco Control, 2014,
https://issuu.com/undp/docs/development_planning_and_tobacco_co.
Ries, Richard K., Shannon C. Miller, and David A. Fiellin, eds. Principles of addiction medicine. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2009.
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