Tobacco unmistakably takes a major toll on the lives of Americans, causing over 450,000 premature deaths each year, and severe measures should be taken to eliminate the bad habit from our lives, including, some say, banning cigarettes. Others argue that, in today’s society, such a goal is too committed, and would be very hard to achieve. I think that cigarettes are one of the deadliest things in the world. If it were up to me, they would have been disregarded a long time ago. There are three reasons why smoking should be banned; it kills people, it hurts other people, and it is expensive.
Tobacco use is the major cause of preventable and untimely death and disease worldwide. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that 46 million Americans age 18 years and older smoke cigarettes and 443,000 smoking-related deaths happen each year in the United States. Cigarettes are people killers, simple as that. They don’t serve any positive purpose. Therefore, they should be omitted.
Smoking affects the population in many ways. It affects smoker’s health and controls their smoking habits and use of time. Secondhand smoke affects others and contaminates the environment. Children are subject to the effects of secondhand smoke because they are still growing and developing. Children that are exposed to secondhand smoke have higher risks of sudden infant death syndrome and various diseases.
In 2009 the Food and Drug Administration banned the production and distribution of flavored cigarettes, such as chocolate and cherry, over worries that the products encouraged youth smoking. Though, banning all cigarette products is a different story. Confinements to passing such a ban include the power of big tobacco companies, the cost of enforcing such a law, and the rise of a black market for cigarettes.
Smoking also places a financial struggle on society. According to the CDC, this burden continues to rise, with almost $193 billion spent every year in the United States – $97 billion from lost efficiency and $96 billion due to smoking-related health care costs, separately. The Society of Actuaries reported in 2006, which is the most recent data available, that secondhand smoke costs the U.S. around $10 billion a year: about $5 billion in medical costs related to secondhand smoke and $4.6 billion in lost wages – youth exposure was not involved in these costs.
Overall, I think that the world would be a much better place without cigarettes. I suggest the government take action immediately and stop the production and distribution of cigarettes. They are dangerous to your health, they kill people, and they are extremely expensive. It’s time that someone puts an end to it.