Persuasive Essay

Samantha Landry March 24,
2014
Language Arts 3, 7Pre
Algebra
Persuasive Essay Did you know that smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States?
The risk of dying from cigarettes has increased for both men and women over the last fifty years in the United States. Smokers have a greater chance than non smokers to develop lung cancer, heart disease, and stroke. Smoking can cause cancer almost anywhere in the body. Almost every organ in the body is harmed by smoking as well.("Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking").
Although smoking is a big source of money for the government, smoking should be banned because it causes death and cancer, it is very costly, and second hand smoke can harm others. According to Rachael Rettner, author of "Should Smoking be Illegal?", "tobacco clearly takes a significant toll on the lives of Americans, causing 450,000 premature deaths each year, and drastic measures should be taken to eliminate the habit from our lives, including, some say, banning cigarettes." My grandmother only smoked socially, having an occasional cigarette while engaging with friends. At the age of sixty five, she was diagnosed with advanced stage 3 lung cancer. The doctors told her she had only three months to live. Although she received chemotherapy and radiation, what has kept her alive for the past fifteen years is the fact that she quit smoking. Smoking causes more deaths than human immunodeficiency virus(HIV), illegal drug use, alcohol use, motor vehicle injuries, and firearm incidents combined. In 90% of men

and women, smoking is the cause of all lung cancer deaths. Around 80% of all deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD) are caused by smoking. ("Health Effects of
Cigarette Smoking"). Smoking is not a healthy choice. Although one may not take this fact seriously, his family will when they are mourning over his death. Not only are cigarettes unhealthy and dangerous, but they are also very expensive. According to Mary Kay Macke author of "How much money do YOU spend on cigarettes?", in 2011, people of Wisconsin who smoked half a pack of cigarettes a day would spend about $1,226.40 a year on cigarettes. Imagine if this money was not used towards cigarettes. It could go towards gasoline or weekly groceries. According to the article "Smoking the financial cost," one day of not smoking or buying a pack of cigarettes saves one about $16, and after a year one would save about $5,800. According to Eric Feinberg author of "Biggest Wastes of Money(Part 1):
Cigarettes, Fashion, Lottery, New Cars", in 2011, depending on the state, a pack of cigarettes cost between $4.74 and $11.90. In 2012 the price of cigarettes went up to between $4.84 and
$12.50. (Feinberg "Biggest Wastes of Money(Part 1): Cigarettes, Fashion, Lottery, New Cars").
Just recently, a study found that cigarette smokers in New York who made $30,000 or less a year spent 25% of their income on cigarettes. Many people use their money on cigarettes when they could be living healthier as well as saving money for things they really need. One might say that if a person wants to smoke and harm his own body, let him, but smoking harms others as well. Secondhand smoke(SHS) causes cancer to people who do not smoke at all.
The article "Secondhand Smoke" states that SHS is a mixture of sidestream smoke and mainstream smoke, both forms of smoke that come from burning tobacco. "Sidestream smoke is smoke from the lighted end of a cigarette, pipe, or cigar; mainstream smoke is the smoke exhaled

by a smoker."("Secondhand Smoke"). According to Surgeon General's reports, SHS kills and cause diseases in children and adults who do not smoke. Secondhand smoke affects the heart,

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