Ban on Smoking-Why Smoking should be Banned!

Essay by hayloUniversity, Bachelor'sA-, July 2003

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Smoking is the inhalation and exhalation of the smoke of burning tobacco. Tobacco leaves are smoked in a variety of ways. They first go through a drying and curing process, and then may be made into cigars or smoking pipes. The most popular method of smoking is by cigarettes, which are made of thinly shredded tobacco rolled in a light paper. Historically, it was thought that smoking was harmless, but more modern clinical and laboratory research has proved that tobacco smoke is an enormous hazard to our health. According to Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia, "Smoke from the average cigarette contains around 4,000 chemicals, some of which are highly toxic and at least 43 of which cause cancer. Nicotine, a major constituent of tobacco smoke, is both poisonous and highly addictive." Although smokers claim that it helps them to relax and release stress, the negative aspects of the habit outweigh the positive.

Smoking is an expensive and highly addictive health hazard for both smokers and non-smokers, and it is especially harmful to unborn babies. I feel that the negative effects of smoking on society should cause a complete ban on smoking.

Cigarette smoking causes a number of health problems that are very costly to treat. Increased risks of respiratory diseases are a very common problem (which include asthma, lung cancer and bronchitis) for smokers. According to Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia:

Smoking causes a fivefold increase in the risk of dying from chronic bronchitis and emphysema, and a twofold increase in deaths from diseases of the heart and coronary arteries. Smoking also increases the risk of stroke by 50 percent--40 percent among men and 60 percent among women.

In addition to all of these risks, smokers are also at an increased risk for many types of cancer. This would include cancer of the larynx,