If You Won’t Give Up Smoking For Yourself… / PSA Video. The hazards of the use of tobacco products, which result in significantly more deaths each year than illegal drugs and AIDS. Smoking damages nearly every organ in the human body, is linked to at least 15 different cancers, and accounts for some 30% of all cancer deaths. And it costs billions of dollars each year. Yet one in five Americans still light up. The 1982 United States Surgeon General’s Report stated that “Cigarette smoking is the major single cause of cancer mortality in the United States.” This statement is as true today as it was in 1982. Smoking is responsible for nearly 1 in 5 deaths in the United States. Because cigarette smoking and tobacco use are acquired behaviors — activities that people choose to do — smoking is the most preventable cause of premature death in our society. This document gives a brief overview of cigarette smoking: who smokes, how smoking affects health, what makes it so hard to quit, and what some of the many benefits of quitting are. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 44.5 million US adults were current smokers in 2006 (the most recent year for which numbers are available). This is 20.8% of all adults (23.9% of men, 18.0% of women) — more than 1 out of 5 people. When broken down by race/ethnicity, the numbers were as follows: Whites 21.9%; African Americans 23.0%; Hispanics 15.2%; American Indians/Alaska Natives 32.4%; Asian Americans 10.4%. The numbers were higher in younger age groups. In 2006, CDC reported almost 24% of those 18 to 44 years old were current smokers, compared to 10.2% in those aged 65 or older. Nationwide, 22.3% of high school students and 8.1% of middle school students were smoking in 2004. More White and Hispanic students smoked cigarettes. About half of all Americans who continue to smoke will die because of the habit. Each year about 438,000 people in the United States die from illnesses related to cigarette smoking. Cigarettes kill more Americans than alcohol, car accidents, suicide, AIDS, homicide, and illegal drugs combined. Cigarette smoking accounts for at least 30% of all cancer deaths. It is a major cause of cancers of the lung, larynx (voice box), oral cavity, pharynx (throat), esophagus (swallowing tube connected to the stomach), and bladder, and it contributes to the development of cancers of the pancreas, cervix, kidney, stomach, and also some leukemias. Smoking is responsible for about 87% of lung cancer deaths. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in both men and women, and is one of the most difficult cancers to treat. Lung cancer is a disease that can in many cases be prevented. Groups that promote non-smoking as part of their religion, such as Mormons and Seventh-day Adventists, have much lower rates of lung cancer and other smoking-related cancers. Only about half of the deaths related to smoking are from cancer. Smoking is also a major cause of heart disease, aneurysms, bronchitis, emphysema, and stroke, and it makes pneumonia and asthma worse. Using tobacco can also damage a woman’s reproductive health. Tobacco use is linked with reduced fertility and a higher risk of miscarriage, early delivery (premature birth), stillbirth, infant death, and is a cause of low birth-weight in infants. It has also been linked to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Smoking has also been linked to other health problems, including gum disease, cataracts, bone thinning, hip fractures, and peptic ulcers. It is also linked to macular degeneration, an eye disease that can cause blindness. Furthermore, the smoke from cigarettes (called secondhand smoke or environmental tobacco smoke) has a harmful health effect on those exposed to it. Producer: Frank Morrow; Production Company: Alternative Information Network; Keywords: tobacco; documentary; Tobacco, the Winnable War; Surgeon General. Creative Commons license: Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States
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