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Joshua Rothenberger
Mrs. Hensel
English IV
6 November, 2015
The Hazards of Smoking
Have you ever thought why do people smoke cigarettes? It seems weird that people spend
a ton of money on something that has no beneficial effects. Over the last 50 years we learned
more and more about how bad it was for people to be inhaling smoke that contained well over
2,000 chemicals. Not to mention the fact that 69 of those chemicals have been linked with
causing cancer. Cigarettes are harmful to the lungs, the heart, and may even cause cancer.
Cigarettes are extremely harmful to the human heart and can cause many different types
of heart disease. 1 in 5 deaths from heart disease are related to cigarette smoking. Although
cigarette smoking remains the most common risk factor for heart disease among the young, few
studies have explored the relationship of smoking with heart disease mortality risk among young
people (Khan). A smoker is 2 to 4 times more likely to acquire heart diseases.
What most people think about when talking about how cigarettes damage the human
body is the lungs. Your lungs are not designed for inhaling smoke that is chalk full of toxins. The
human lungs when exposed to constant smoke inhalation begin to accumulate a layer of tar on
the inside which cause many smokers to have a very difficult time exercising or just breathing
regularly. The most thought of lung problem when dealing with smoking is lung cancer.
Smoking was linked to lung cancer, tobacco companies and many smokers were quick to argue

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that the case was unproven (Bailey). Although big tobacco originally tried to say that cigarettes
didnt cause cancer many studies have been published that link cigarettes smoking to lung
cancer.
Of the 250 known harmful chemicals in cigarette smoke 69 of those chemicals have been
directly linked to causing cancer. There are all kinds of different cancers that smoking cigarettes
can cause such as oral, lung. Kidney, etc. Cigarette smoking causes at least 30 percent of all
cancer deaths. It causes 87 percent of lung cancer deaths, and over90 percent of oral (mouth) and
laryngeal (voice box) cancers. (Esherick). Although the risk of getting cancer is higher in those
who smoke there is still hope. Those who quit smoking completely give their bodies a chance to
start cleaning out all of the nasty things that come from smoking such as the tar and yellowed
teeth, it also lowers their risk of getting cancer.
Although cigarettes can do so much harm to the human body, it is never too late to quit
smoking. The human body can start to fix the damage caused once the use of cigarettes has
halted. Cigarettes are not as safe as they were once thought to be and have since been linked to
all sorts of heart and lung problems and are also linked with various types of cancer. Tobacco
cigarettes are killing people and something needs to be done to end the grasp that tobacco has on
peoples lives.

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Work cited
Bailey, Ellen, and Nancy Sprague. "Cigarette Smoking: An Overview." Points Of View:
Cigarette Smoking (2015): 1. Points of View Reference Center. Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
Khan, Rumana J., et al. "The Risk And Burden Of Smoking Related Heart Disease
Mortality Among Young People In The United States." Tobacco Induced Diseases 13.1 (2015):
1-8. Academic Search Complete. Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
Esherick, Joan, and Mary Ann McDonnell. "TOBACCO's BIG RISK: Cancer." Clearing
The Haze: A Teen's Guide To Smoking-Related Health Issues (2004): 48. Points of View
Reference Center. Web. 11 Nov. 2015.