Smoking Cigarettes Should Be Outlawed

Smoking Cigarettes Should be Outlawed There will always be discussion on whether or not smoking cigarettes should be illegal. There are an estimated forty million people living in the United States over the age of eighteen, whom are frequent smokers, regulations of smoking have been changed continuously to prevent access of cigarettes to the youth. Smokers put themselves and nonsmokers at risk of tobacco related diseases, so therefore smoking cigarettes should be against the law. Many people argue that making cigarettes illegal goes against smokers’ rights, but what about the rights of nonsmokers? Smokers have the choice of smoking cigarettes however, nonsmokers do not have the choice of being exposed to secondhand smoke. Nonsmokers can be affected by cigarette smoke even if they are only around smoking for a brief time period (Newman). Over two point five million people have died from passive smoke, because of being exposed to secondhand smoke. Smokers who smoke around children increase the children’s risks of developing smoking related diseases, including Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, pneumonia, and bronchitis (Chew). Additionally women who smoke during pregnancy consequently put the fetus at risk of developing asthma and being born at an unhealthily low weight. Over 350 …show more content…
That is all there is to it. If smoking was illegal, then smoking related diseases would decrease immensely, disease could then expand the population and bring up life expectancy. Having the responsibility of preventing harm is one of the government’s responsibilities. The right to make cigarettes illegal will prevent harm from not only users, but will prevent secondhand smoke from harming nonsmokers. The government pays for most smoking related diseases, so they should have the right to put a stop to smoking all together. Making smoking cigarettes illegal will be a way to protect the people and even the environment, so furthermore smoking should be