Smoking for Thought

Before you make a big purchase you probably find out as much as you can about the product you want to buy so that you make the best choice, right? As a consumer it makes sense to get the most for your hard earned dollar, but how do you decide the best choice? Most likely this involves weighing pros and cons, looking at cost, and hearing what others have said about the product. It seems natural, but how many people actually research a personal choice? Let’s consider smoking. How many of us really know what is in a cigarette, how many of us really know how bad they are for us, how many know what they will cost?

So what are some of the ingredients? Of course there is tobacco, water, artificial flavoring; that doesn’t seem so bad. So how come there is a filter and what does that even do? The answer lies in the additives. A number of things are included in cigarettes that allow them to have better taste, to be more easily smoked, to prolong burning, increase shelf life, and unfortunately make them more harmful.

*Butane, ethanol, and methanol are all combustible fuels
*Hydrogen cyanide is a gas chamber poison
*Ammonia is a powerful cleaning agent
*Acetone is used in nail polish remover and in plastics
*Carbon monoxide is found in automobile exhaust
*Toluene is an industrial solvent
*Cadmium is used in batteries
*Deildrin is found in bug spray

These chemicals are a small sampling of the 4,000+ chemicals found in cigarettes (43 of which are proven to play a role in causing cancer) that are commonly referred to as ‘tar’!! While it is the nicotine that gets people to smoke due to its addictive nature, it is the ‘tar’ that causes the most health concerns. Thus, the purpose of the filter: to screen out this tar and nicotine. However the reason people continue to smoke is to obtain the nicotine level their body has become addicted to. So if less nicotine is entering per puff, a smoker will continue to smoke until they have reached that needed level and as an added bonus receive all those other lethal chemicals contained in the smoke. With thousands of harmful chemicals entering your body with each inhalation, what happens to your health is worth a second look. Lets just work our way down shall we.

*Smokers are 4 times more likely to have gray hair or hair loss
*Smoking causes bad breath, tooth decay, staining, and gum disease
*Smoke entering the lungs causes inflammation increasing the risk 10 fold for lung cancer and emphysema
*You also get an attractive chronic cough from mucus secretion impairment and the benefit of a higher likelihood in developing bronchial infections
*Blood pressure rises and rising carbon monoxide levels compromises your blood’s oxygen levels
*Cholesterol deposits also form constricting circulation and increasing chances for strokes and heart attacks
*This also affects the skin; leading to dryness and an beautiful grayis color with increased wrinkles as a result of the break down of collagen
*Carcinogens help increase your chance of cancer in the esophagus, bladder, and pancreas among other places

All these health problems lead to reduced physical ability and increased chances of injury not to mention DEATH! There is good news however; quitting the habit can allow the body to repair itself assuming a fatal condition hasn’t already set in.

Besides your life being at stake, there are other costs to consider when purchasing cigarettes. Smokers pay more for health insurance; lose more on the resale of their house and cars; and can even lose their chance at a job. However, it extends beyond the individual. The Centers for Disease Control puts forth that over 94 billion are lost each year in productivity and 89 billion in healthcare costs. This equates to roughly each American household pays 596 dollars a year in taxes due to smoking according to “The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Taxpayers”. Not only does this choice cost you thousands of dollars and your health but it also creates a burden on society, so next time, think before you decide to smoke.

-Joe Stauber