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SMOKING CIGARETTES, IS IT REALLY THAT BAD?


Cigarette smoking, is it really that bad for you? The 1982 United States Surgeon General's Report stated that "Cigarette smoking is the major single cause of cancer mortality in the United States." This statement is as true today as it was in 1982. Is that what you need to know to not smoke? Well here are more disturbing truths about cigarettes. Smoking is responsible for nearly 1 in 5 deaths in the United States. Because cigarette smoking and tobacco use are acquired behaviors -- activities that people choose to do -- smoking is the most preventable cause of premature death in our society.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 44.5 million US adults were current smokers in 2006 (the most recent year for which numbers are available). This is 20.8% of all adults (23.9% of men, 18.0% of women) -- more than 1 out of 5 people. That alone should tell you how bad smoking is. However, most people are too stubborn to admit when they are doing something wrong. The numbers were higher in younger age groups. In 2006, CDC reported almost 24% of those 18 to 44 years old were current smokers, compared to 10.2% in those aged 65 or older.

Nationwide, 22.3% of high school students and 8.1% of middle school students were smoking in 2004. More White and Hispanic students smoked cigarettes. That tells you how many kids get addicted to smoking and at such young ages, but what they don’t show is how many kids in elementary school smoke because of peer pressure from middle school students and high school. These are plenty of numbers to show you how smoking affects the younger ages. When kids see adults smoking they think it’s cool and thinks it’ll make them look cool so they are more likely to try it.

These are some health affects of smoking; about half of all Americans who continue to smoke will die because of the habit. Each year about...