by Erin K. Wiedemer

Created on: February 11, 2008

Cigarette smoking has long been considered a vice, but only in the last forty years has it been considered a health risk. In 1965, cigarette companies were lawfully obligated to print warnings on cigarette packs, and in 1971 laws were passed to print these warnings on all forms of cigarette advertising (Pringle 37). Though the Surgeon General's warning, "Caution: Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health" sounds dire, it has not stopped people from smoking. Perhaps this is because it is not specific in its warning. Educating the public about the harmful elements in cigarettes is a proactive way to end the epidemic of cigarette smoking.

There are many forms of tobacco consumption (loose tobacco known as "chew" or "plug," and snuff) but smoking cigarettes is the most toxic form of tobacco ingestion (145). Tar, carbon monoxide, and nicotine are the primary ingredients in cigarettes that lead to disease and health problems. Tar is inhaled into the lungs with each puff on a cigarette. These tar particles are inhaled with the smoke and fill the air sacs (alveoli) of the lungs (Pringle, 30). Carbon monoxide is a deadly poison, and is carried through the lungs and brain by cigarette smoke. "Carbon monoxide appears to facilitate many of the disease processes associated with smoking" (155). It binds to hemoglobin better than oxygen, thereby reducing the amount of oxygen in the blood, and is carried throughout the entire body. The brain and heart are especially vulnerable to the carbon monoxide in cigarette smoke because they are dependent on aerobic respiration for proper functioning (155). The third lethal ingredient in cigarettes is nicotine. Nicotine is a deadly poison that generates severe addiction. It is so potent that it is commonly used as an insecticide and can be fatal even when simply absorbed through the skin.

These three ingredients are the main instigators of the health problems caused by cigarette smoking.
"More than 434,000 people in the United States die each yearabout fifty every hourfrom smoking-related diseases. Worldwide the annual death toll is at least three million. More than one out of ever six deaths in the Untied States is due to cigarette smoking. (Pringle 44)"

Heart disease is a major cause of smoking-related deaths. "People who smoke are at nearly twice the risk to contract it compared to nonsmokers" (157). Cancer is another, highly publicized, deadly, smoking-related disease. Cancers of the lungs, larynx, oral cavity, esophagus,

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