Maksym Ptakh
Mr. Soheil Heidar-Bozorg
ENG4U
February 8, 2015
The Benefits of Illegalizing Cigarette Smoking in North America
Smokers tend to believe that smoking only brings them harm and that it is their choice to smoke, but unfortunately that is not the case. By smoking cigarettes, the smoker does not only harm him or herself, they harm the world around them as well. Today, about 6 million people worldwide die annually to cigarette smoking. Cigarette smoking is known to cause multiple illnesses, such as heart diseases, lung diseases, and sometimes death. In addition, many people fall victim to second-hand smoke, but the ones mainly affected by it are children. Finally, the production of tobacco and its waste are major pollutants to the environment. …show more content…
By smoking, the smoker puts him or herself at a very high risk of death. Every time a smoker lights a cigarette and smokes, it slowly destroys the person’s lungs. The toxins in cigarettes and cigars cause multiple illnesses such as heart and lung diseases that could eventually lead to death. “Tobacco smoke is a toxic and carcinogenic mixture of more than 5,000 chemicals.”(Talhout et al. 613). In other words, tobacco smoke is a mixture of numerous toxic chemicals that can cause cancer. It consists of three main harmful compounds: carbon monoxide, tar, and nicotine. Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas that has no colour, taste or smell. Moreover, the body finds it hard to distinguish from oxygen and absorbs it into the bloodstream. Very high amounts of this substance can reduce the body’s functions, thus putting the person into a coma or to death. Tar is a black substance that damages the lungs over time, covering and eventually destroying the cilia, the lungs’ filters. As a result, the toxic …show more content…
"Global Effects of Smoking, of Quitting, and of Taxing Tobacco." New England Journal of Medicine 370.1 (2014): 60-68. Web. 8 Feb. 2015.
Talhout, Reinskje, Thomas Schulz, Ewa Florek, Jan Van Benthem, Piet Wester, and Antoon Opperhuizen. "Hazardous Compounds in Tobacco Smoke." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 8.2 (2011): 613-28. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Roberts, Michelle. "Passive Smoking 'damages Children 's Arteries '" BBC News. N.p., 4 Mar. 2014. Web. 8 Feb. 2015.
McIntosh, James. "Secondhand Smoke 'still Affects 1 in 4 Nonsmokers '" Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, 04 Feb. 2015. Web. 06 Feb. 2015.
McLaren, Warren. "Smoking: Environmental and Social Impacts." TreeHugger, 27 Feb. 2007. Web. 13 Feb. 2015.
Novotny, Thomas E., and Elli Slaughter. "Tobacco Product Waste: An Environmental Approach to Reduce Tobacco Consumption." Current Environmental Health Reports 1.3 (2014): 208-16. Web. 8 Feb.
Mr. Soheil Heidar-Bozorg
ENG4U
February 8, 2015
The Benefits of Illegalizing Cigarette Smoking in North America
Smokers tend to believe that smoking only brings them harm and that it is their choice to smoke, but unfortunately that is not the case. By smoking cigarettes, the smoker does not only harm him or herself, they harm the world around them as well. Today, about 6 million people worldwide die annually to cigarette smoking. Cigarette smoking is known to cause multiple illnesses, such as heart diseases, lung diseases, and sometimes death. In addition, many people fall victim to second-hand smoke, but the ones mainly affected by it are children. Finally, the production of tobacco and its waste are major pollutants to the environment. …show more content…
By smoking, the smoker puts him or herself at a very high risk of death. Every time a smoker lights a cigarette and smokes, it slowly destroys the person’s lungs. The toxins in cigarettes and cigars cause multiple illnesses such as heart and lung diseases that could eventually lead to death. “Tobacco smoke is a toxic and carcinogenic mixture of more than 5,000 chemicals.”(Talhout et al. 613). In other words, tobacco smoke is a mixture of numerous toxic chemicals that can cause cancer. It consists of three main harmful compounds: carbon monoxide, tar, and nicotine. Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas that has no colour, taste or smell. Moreover, the body finds it hard to distinguish from oxygen and absorbs it into the bloodstream. Very high amounts of this substance can reduce the body’s functions, thus putting the person into a coma or to death. Tar is a black substance that damages the lungs over time, covering and eventually destroying the cilia, the lungs’ filters. As a result, the toxic …show more content…
"Global Effects of Smoking, of Quitting, and of Taxing Tobacco." New England Journal of Medicine 370.1 (2014): 60-68. Web. 8 Feb. 2015.
Talhout, Reinskje, Thomas Schulz, Ewa Florek, Jan Van Benthem, Piet Wester, and Antoon Opperhuizen. "Hazardous Compounds in Tobacco Smoke." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 8.2 (2011): 613-28. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Roberts, Michelle. "Passive Smoking 'damages Children 's Arteries '" BBC News. N.p., 4 Mar. 2014. Web. 8 Feb. 2015.
McIntosh, James. "Secondhand Smoke 'still Affects 1 in 4 Nonsmokers '" Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, 04 Feb. 2015. Web. 06 Feb. 2015.
McLaren, Warren. "Smoking: Environmental and Social Impacts." TreeHugger, 27 Feb. 2007. Web. 13 Feb. 2015.
Novotny, Thomas E., and Elli Slaughter. "Tobacco Product Waste: An Environmental Approach to Reduce Tobacco Consumption." Current Environmental Health Reports 1.3 (2014): 208-16. Web. 8 Feb.