After researching the 10 leading causes of death in the United states, I discovered that they were heart disease, cancer, chronic lower respiratory diseases, stroke, accidents, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, influenza and pneumonia, nephritis and suicide. Heart disease being the leading cause of death is surprising to me because that is an illness that can relatively be controlled. Heart disease can be caused by unhealthy diet, smoking, lack of exercise and being overweight. Since this is known to everyone that heart disease is a huge risk, it's surprising that more people so not take more action to reduce this risk. In my opinion, a disease that can be controlled by just keeping yourself healthy, should not be a leading cause of death.
Lung Cancer in Women The primary risk factor of lung cancer in women is smoking; approximately 85% of lung cancer cases can be explained by smoking (Gulyn and Youssef, 2010). It is unclear if the remaining 15% of cases are due to exposure to second-hand smoke or other factors; but most nonsmokers diagnosed with cancer are women (Gulyn and Youssef, 2010). Lung cancer kills more than twice as many women as breast cancer, and more women than breast cancer, cervical cancer, uterine cancer, and ovarian cancer combined (Gulyn and Youssef. 2010). Lung cancer is the deadliest form of cancer, with nearly 90% of patients dying within 2 years of diagnosis, in large part because it tends to be diagnosed late (Gulyn and Youssef, 2010).
Attention Getter: A shocking statistic: Did you know that smoking is the most preventable cause of disease and premature death in America? In 2012, about 577,190 Americans are expected to die of cancer,more than 1,500 people a day. Cancer is the second most common cause of death in the US, exceeded only by heart disease,accounting for nearly 1 of every 4 deaths. (American Cancer Society) B. Thesis Statement: Breaking the habit of smoking is the right way to go because smoking is not only harmful for you but it is also harmful to the people around you. II.
Affects of secondhand smoke includes: heart disease, cancer, and asthma. “Each year in the United States alone, it is responsible for: an estimated 46,000 deaths from heart disease in people who are current nonsmokers, about 3,400 nonsmoking adults die of lung cancer as a result of breathing secondhand smoke, and worse asthma or asthma related problems in up to 1 million asthmatic children” (American Cancer Society, 2011, para. 11). Most smokers do not realize how much their smoking affects those around them, until they lose someone close to them from secondhand smoke or if you have children that stay sick due to smoke. There are a lot of bad chemicals in cigarettes and other tobacco products.
The social and media related exposure of smoking and deceit of the tobacco industries is leading incoming generations to create fatal health habits. The negative health effects of smoking and other tobacco use are well known and documented by nearly every health-conscious organization in the United States. Cancer, heart disease, and most major pulmonary diseases top the list of the most painful and deadly reasons to quit and not to start in the first place. It’s estimated that more than 1-in-6 deaths in the United States is due to cigarettes alone. In addition, more than three million people die every year worldwide from smoking related diseases (Pringle 44).
Of those, more than 300 non-smokers will die of lung cancer and at least 700 non-smokers will die of coronary heart disease caused by exposure to second-hand smoke. This number is five times more than the number of Canadians who die from traffic injuries, alcohol abuse, murder and suicide combined. Picture a tobacco free society where smoking is outlawed! What are the chances of that happening? Likely impossible but there has to be a small possibility of preventing people from smoking.
There are over 4,000 harmful chemicals in cigarettes. Cigarettes are the number two leading cause of death in the U.S. And they are a major contributor to heart disease, the number one cause of death in the U.S. Cigarettes also contain a number of carcinogens and are the number one cause of lung cancer in the U.S. Cigarettes are harmful for both the mother and the baby. And there’s always the possibility the baby will be stillborn, or have SIDS, and will die before it has the chance to live. This would cause severe mental and emotional stress for mother, knowing it was her fault she lost her baby. She could be sacred for life and never recover.
A person’s health is greatly affected by their lifestyle decisions. Someone who chooses to smoke especially on a regular long term basis will be harming they're health greatly. Smoking directly causes 1000's of deaths in the UK each year and contributes too many more. Cigarettes contain more than 4000 chemicals, These chemicals are dangerous and cause many physical problems on a person’s health,69 of those chemicals are known to cause cancer, some of the ingredients of a cigarette are horrific: •Benzene (petrol additive) •Formaldehyde (embalming fluid) •Ammonia (toilet cleaner) •Acetone (nail polish) •Tar •Nicotine •Carbon monoxide •Arsenic (rat poison) •Hydrogen Cyanide (Gas chamber poison) All smokers energy levels are depleted because of lack of oxygen in the blood stream. Oxygen levels decrease about 15% when smoking, to be replaced by carbon monoxide.
The cigarette is the deadliest object in the history of human civilization. “Tobacco use causes 6 million deaths per year” (Fast Facts). Despite these many deaths, tobacco is still available all over Canada. Smoking tobacco should be made illegal in Canada. In view of facts that it causes health problems, costs the government millions and is also harmful for the environment.
Another common heart problem linked to smoking is heart disease. It is estimated that nearly 70,000 nonsmokers die from heart disease each year as a result of exposure to tobacco smoke. Nicotine decreases oxygen to the heart, increases your blood pressure and heart rate, increasing your risk of blood clotting, and damages your cells that line coronary arteries and other blood vessels. Health problems such as