Smoking - by Dilan

Have you ever been walking down the street and smell that peculiar smell?

You look to the left. Nothing. To the right. You see what looks like a teenager smoking a cigarette. You’re surprised. Teenagers usually don’t smoke. But now they do. We have to stop. It’s life-threatening.

So, you’ve definitely heard of smoking. You’re parents might smoke. You might. You’re parents are probably encouraging you to stop if they don’t smoke. They’re definitely right! Here’s why…

So, you’ve probably also heard that smoking is bad for you. But, believe it or not, it’s worse than you think! “How can this be possible!?” you might ask? Well, this mini-story might make you see what I’m trying to tell you, and what I’m trying to say.

I know someone who’s cousin, when she was little, and whenever she visited, was smoking. Eventually, in the last year of his life, had to wear a breathing mask. He eventually died from emphysema (a breathing disease mostly caused by/smoking increases the risk of getting it, that is deadly, literally!) .

Well, that’s only one of the stories I have. But, let’s get to the facts, you’ll be surprised.

         SMOKING FACTS

Did you know that smoking causes 480,000 deaths each year in the U.S., more than alcohol use, fire-arm (gun) related incidents, HIV, illegal drug usage, and motor-vehicle-incidents combined! Yup, that’s how bad it is!

It causes 26 diseases and/or bad-for-health causes, including cancer! Yeah, cancer! You probably know that cancer can and will kill you.

Plus, cigarettes have nicotine in them, which is addictive, and horrible for your health. Fortunately, we only absorb 1/10 of the nicotine in the cigarette. But, if you think that’s nothing, nicotine is very addicting, and even that much (1 mg) makes you want more.

Out of the blue, there is a disease called Coronary Heart Disease. Here’s a story about it.     

My dad talked to a guy who (this guy didn’t smoke, but smoking increases the risk, by, like, quadrupled!) was just going about his daily life, walking down the street, and then, BANG! It felt like he’d been hit by a baseball bat. “Worst headache of your life.” he said. Just walking down the street, suddenly almost screaming in agony, holding his head. “I bet people thought I was weird.” he explained. “I knew I had to get to the hospital in a few hours or I’d die, so I went straight to the hospital. As you can see, I survived.

This shows that smoking can produce lethal diseases.

          EXERCISE

Carbon Monoxide in cigarettes makes the heart work hastily; which makes it harder to exercise for smokers.

Did you know that even smokers who smoke less than 5 cigarettes a day can have early signs of cardiovascular disease before-time. If you see these signs, then quit while you can / before you get too addicted.

REPRODUCTION    

These are some horrible things that can happen if you smoke while pregnant:

• Premature birth
• Miscarriage
• Stillbirth
• Low birth weight
• Sudden infant death syndrome
• Infant illnesses  

 CANCER

Cancer causes 30% of all deaths in the U.S. Talking of Lung Cancer deaths, 80% of all Lung Cancer deaths are from smoking. From cancer, Lung cancer is the leading cause of now, cancer deaths in the U.S. for both men and women.

Plus Lungs, smoking is at risk for these types of cancer, also:

• Mouth
• Voice box
• Throat
• Esophagus
• Kidney
• Cervix
• Liver
• Bladder
• Stomach

QUITTING

These are risks that can be reduced massively when you quit smoking:

• Stroke risk decreases to a non-smoker’s risk after 5 years.
• Risks for multiple cancers, including mouth and throat, drop by half after 5 years. The risk of Lung Cancer drops by half after 10 years.
• After a year, the risk for a heart attack drops by half. After 15 years, it’s the same as someone who’s never smoked before.

Now, you can probably see why you shouldn’t smoke, and if you do, why you should quit.

I hope you’re with me here, so if somebody else asks you if you want a cigarette, or anything with tobacco, say no and refuse!

Oh, plus, and BYE-BYE,

Thank you soooo much for reading!

        THE END

P.S. Don’t smoke!