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Tobacco and the Risk of Smoking

Its no secret that cigarettes are both highly addictive and unhealthy. Yet, with nearly one in five Americans and one in 10 people worldwide identifying as smokers, tobacco remains one of the most widely used addictive substances. Although tobacco doesn't carry the same stigma as harder, illegal drugs such as cocaine or heroin, the consequences of its use can be just as dire.

  1. Addiction

    • Perhaps the most obvious risk associated with smoking tobacco is addiction. This addiction stems from the chemical nicotine, which is contained in tobacco and is inhaled during the process of smoking. Nicotine is highly addictive and withdrawing from it while trying to quit smoking can be a brutal process full of cravings, headaches and anxiety. This addiction is what keeps smokers attached to tobacco and exposes them to the ill effects of long-term use.

    Health Issues

    • In addition to nicotine, modern-day tobacco products contain a variety of chemical additives. The average cigarette, for example, contains up to 4,000 chemicals and can expose the lungs of smokers to carbon monoxide, tar and phenols. The inhalation of smoke into the lungs results in exposure to these chemicals, which can cause serious respiratory problems and difficulty breathing. More notably, though, long-term exposure can result in a variety of different cancers -- from lung and breast cancer to cancers of the neck and mouth. In fact, over 90 percent of all lung cancer cases and 38,000 deaths per year in the United States can be attributed to smoking.

    Secondhand Smoke

    • Smokers aren't the only ones exposed to the risks of tobacco. In addition to causing a plethora of health problems in smokers themselves, the smoke given off by tobacco products can affect those in the general vicinity as well. This smoke, known as secondhand smoke, can be inhaled by non-smokers and expose them to the same chemicals and health-risks as the smokers themselves. Especially vulnerable are children who live with smokers. According to the American Cancer Society, between 7,500 and 15,000 children under 18 months of age are hospitalized because of lung infections caused by secondhand smoke inhalation. Secondhand smoke can also cause the same types of cancer to which a smoker would be vulnerable.

    Financial

    • Tobacco smoking caries plenty of financial risk, too. Because of rising taxes on tobacco products, the average price of a pack of 20 cigarettes as of 2011 ranges from $4.50 to $5 a pack. Because the addiction to nicotine is so strong and the withdrawal symptoms are so aggravating, smokers are tied in to constantly spending money on tobacco to avoid running short. For a pack a day smoker, this can mean spending $1,825 a year on cigarettes alone. That number does not take into account the amount of money a smoker could end up spending on medical treatment down the road after developing health problems from years of smoke inhalation.

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