Smoking is one of the leading causes of lung cancer. This is a warning that has been trumpeted by governments around the world. Almost every pack of cigarette produced today has this warning emblazoned across the cigarette logo. Yet it seems that nobody is listening. People still smoke despite the dire consequences associated with tobacco use.
According to the World Health Organization, tobacco use is the probable cause for at least 25 different diseases. The WHO even announced that smoking is now, in fact, is now …the greater cause of death and illness than any other disease. In the United Kingdom alone, at least 20,000 people die of smoking-related lung cancer every year. Doctors have been very emphatic in their warnings about the links of smoking to cancers of the mouth, liver, kidney, bladder, stomach and cervix. Aside from chronic bronchitis and emphysema, other lung and respiratory illnesses are blamed on tobacco use. Smoking is also a very serious risk to pregnant women — those who actually smoke during pregnancy and pregnant women who are exposed to so-called secondary smoke. The US-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that smoking harms nearly all organs in the human body. CDC records show that 438,000 people, or almost one in every five deaths in the U.S. is related to excessive smoking. Fact sheets released by CDC state that 90% of lung cancer deaths in women and 80% of lung cancer deaths in men in the United States were positively linked to the excessive use of tobacco.
But if the effects of smoking are so plainly dangerous to one’s health, one do people smoke?
Based on current estimates, there are now 1.1 billion smokers around the world. Each smoker may have a different reason or combination of reasons for using tobacco. One common reason given by smokers for using tobacco is their claim that tobacco helps them deal with stress and anxiety. Many adults with problems at work or in their relationships use smoking as an outlet and a coping agent. The upper effect of cigarette use can actually help relax. Stress and anxiety, they claim, can be handled a bit easier with the use of a couple of sticks. Among young people, cigarette use is often linked to the desire to appear mature. Smoking is seen as a sign of coming of age for most teens. A closer look would reveal that many teenagers, too, suffer from stress and anxiety. Their distress can come from their difficulties at home or with schoolwork. The pressure to belong also forces some young people to adopt the smoking habits of their peers. But another common yet little spoken of reason for smoking is weight control. Some people claim that smoking helps them reduce their appetite. This claim has solid basis since smoking dulls the taste buds on the tongue. Those who quit smoking usually gain weight because they suddenly find that their food tastes a bit better compared to the time when they still used tobacco.