Perhaps the most critical factor about cigarette smoking is the likelihood of addiction. Becoming addicted to nicotine causes smoking to overshadow the other priorities in life. The urge to smoke can supersede everything from the threat of health problems to daily activities. The National Institute on Drug Abuse equates the addictive properties of nicotine with those of heroin. Once hooked, tobacco users may become unable to avoid the additional physical, mental and practical costs associated with a drug dependency.
Health Issues
As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC report, cigarette smoking causes premature death and disease in people who breathe first- or secondhand smoke. Tobacco users will have a greater degree of risk, but even nonsmokers can die from smoking-related diseases. These include lung cancer, coronary heart disease, reproductive disorders and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases. Smokers themselves may also contract more wide-ranging health problems, such as cataracts, osteoporosis and periodontitis, a severe disease of the gums. Smoking carries a higher than normal risk for potentially fatal heart attacks, strokes and aneurysms, as well as cancers of the throat, stomach, kidney, pancreas and bladder.
Economic Impacts
All of these health problems add up to higher medical bills, a factor of smoking that is often overlooked. Ongoing prescription medication costs, doctor visits and time lost from work create a substantial economic impact on tobacco users. The American Cancer Society also points out that health and life insurance rates may become higher for smokers than nonsmokers, and many automobile insurers charge smokers more for coverage. This doesn't factor in the high price of tobacco products. Cigarette packs run between $5 and $10 as of 2010, the American Lung Association relates. A "moderate" pack-a-day investment will run $1,825 to $3,650 for the year, and costs continue to rise. Because smokers' medical needs increase as prices go up over time, the financial outlay for smoking can grow exponentially.
Social Consequences
The economic impact of cigarette smoking on a business may cause employers to think twice about hiring or retaining smokers. The CDC reports that smokers miss more days of work for longer stretches than nonsmokers, and they also take more frequent daily work breaks. Cigarette smoking may be relegated to designated outdoor areas, away from nonsmokers.
The American Cancer Society notes that this segregation may limit smokers' social pools to other smokers, who make up only one-fifth of the population. Nonsmokers may wish to avoid the health problems and aesthetic factors of smoking, such as personal odor and stained teeth and skin. Tobacco use can effectively limit social interaction with family members, colleagues and potential mates.
