These days, the term smoking is generally associated with smoking a cigarette or a cigar. However, since 5000 BC this practise has been around. Smoking was common during ceremonies especially in Africa and India. Over the years it has evolved from in the first place natural plant stems and leaves to pipes to now handy and simple cigarettes.
A short-lived feeling of goodness felt is the main reason why a lot of people smoke. The substance giving this feeling may change but tobacco is the most popular substance. Tobacco comes from the leaves of the plants belonging to the species Nicotiana. The chemical nicotine is what makes smoking tobacco enjoyable and addictive. In addition to this, marijuana is also used, normally flavored with tobacco or herbal fruits.
It is mainly teenagers who take this habit into their adulthood, especially when they start as young as 18, which is very common today. This growth in recent years can be related to the appealing advertisements of mainly cigarettes. Developing countries account for the most smoking teenagers due to the lack of awareness of the health risks associated with smoking.
As a result of long periods of smoking, the chemicals in the tobacco smoke bank on the lungs, eventually growing into a tumour, leading to lung cancer. Smoking is responsible for majority of lung cancer deaths. The rapid growth in the number of deaths due to smoking related lung cancer has to lead to many campaigns to stop smoking. Cigarette packets too carry health warnings to let people know the effects of smoking.
Smoking has been banned in certain countries in public areas to get people quiting smoking. Almost all airports have a separate area for those who want to smoke. These attempts are to not only stop smoking people of the habit, but to reduce passive smokers. Passive smokers are greatly affected too as they do not have the advantage of the filter found in almost all cigarettes. This has lead to many protests by passive smokers to stop smoking, not only in public areas, but everywhere in the country.
It could be said that the campaign to stop smoking is growing as fast as the tobacco industry. Things like smoking patches, different types of treatments are now available to help people quit the habit and stop smoking. A smoker usually takes a couple of few years to get rid of the habit, but with the help of these tools the period taken to stop smoking has reduced to months.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:47 am
it seemed so radical when calafornia first announced that it would be banning smoking in it’s bars. we all laughed at how ridiculous it seemed…yet now we have it in all bars and pubs in the UK and it just feels normal.
it initially seemed like a drastic measure but i think a lot of people have pushed themselves to quit as a result – I guess that can only be a good thing. having said that – I wonder how much less the govenment makes in tax from cigarettes now sales are down?