Native American Tobacco

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First encountered by American Indians, the plant Tobacco is natively cultivated in Northern and Southern America. First used in traditional Native American practices, the plant was first used for recreational purposes when introduced to the European settlers. Throughout the years, an entire industry has been built on the production of tobacco, the main use of it being in cigarettes. The popularity of smoking said cigarettes ascended at a drastic rate until with the 20th century came various studies proving this use of the plant to have extreme potential for harming the human body. Now, with laws increasingly being established to control its usage, debate on whether or not Tobacco should be banned entirely is a cause of controversy and a dominating…show more content…
A well-known public health administrator C. Everett Koop once stated that ‘cigarette smoking is identified as the chief, preventable cause of death in our society’. This point of view has been proven by various studies to lead to health complications (including -due to blood clotting in the brain-, coronary artery disease, high blood pressure and erectile dis-function). Smoking itself is the single preeminent cause of death in the United States, causing 1/5 deaths (CDC, 2014). This habit is known for not only causing health deficits but worsening already-present ones; asthma attacks can be prompted by tobacco smoking and smoking can augment the gravity of said attacks. Smoking has also be found to effect fertility and the risk of stillbirth. The smoking of tobacco also causes cancer; organs such as the bladder, pancreas, stomach and many more have been shown to develop cancer in smokers. Those against the banning of tobacco, however, argue that tobacco also comes with its health benefits. Smoking has for years been glamourized as a weight-loss tool; indeed lowering the likelihood of obesity, tobacco suppresses appetite. The nicotine found in tobacco was found to decrease appetite by affecting the hypothalamus. Smoking has also been found to decrease the likelihood of developing Parkinson’s disease, as studies observe a direct correlation between regular smokers and a…show more content…
In the US, tobacco is the single most remunerative business in existence. Large tobacco industries as well as smaller businesses would be affected by the ban, and farmers of the plant would find themselves at loss of jobs. Unemployment is already a major issue in today’s society, and this ban would cause its rates to rocket. Tobacco is also a prominent player in the trade industry; countries such as LEDCs that rely on its trade (amongst that of other products) for their economy would find themselves at great loss. However, it could be argued that since tobacco lowers life expectancy and causes diseases, tobacco costs considerably more than it should to the taxpayer. Tobacco indirectly costs the government considerable amounts of money in healthcare, all which come from the taxpayer’s pocket; were these to be reduced, taxes may be reduced as well, benefiting individuals and the overall economy. It is my personal belief that although tobacco should not be banned, restrictions should be placed. Tobacco used for medicinal and therapeutic purposes should remain in place and continue to be produced; however, an additional tax should be placed on those who smoke recreationally, in order to discourage this
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