Mrs. S. Sumathi
By: Mrs. S. Sumathi
The use of tobacco has been found for over 8000 years. The cultivation of tobacco started in 5000 BC. It was originally used by the Native Americans in religious ceremonies and for medical purposes. The tobacco’s early history mentioned that it was used as a cure for all remedy, for dressing wounds, reducing pain and even for tooth ache. The Europeans believed that the tobacco had magical healing powers. Later the scientists of the 17th century discovered the consequences that tobacco had on human health including difficulty in breathing. As the usage continued, the scientists began to study further to understand the chemicals in tobacco and it’s harmful effects. In 1985, tobacco and cigarettes became more popular making lung cancer, the number one cause of death. Over the past twenty years, cigarettes have changed in many ways. Tobacco industries increased their marketing strategies in vast manner with the new strategies.
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus Nicotiana. The active ingredients of tobacco are nicotine and harmine in which nicotine is an addictive drug. Tobacco contains many chemicals that are harmful to the smokers and also to the non-smokers. There are more than 7000 chemicals in tobacco smoke out of which atleast 250 are known to be harmful. Some of the harmful chemicals are hydrogen cyanide, carbon monoxide and ammonia. Breathing even a little smoke will be harmful. Tobacco use is one of the most important risk factors shared by four of the main categories of diseases. They are cancer, cardio vascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, stroke, asthma, reproductive effects in women and diabetes.
The tobacco epidemic is one of the major threats to public health as it kills up to fifty percent of its users . All forms of tobacco are harmful. There is no safe level exposure to tobacco. Cigarette smoking is the most common form of tobacco use across the world. Other tobacco products include waterpipe tobacco, various smokeless tobacco, pipe tobacco, bidis etc. Smokeless tobacco contains many cancer causing toxins. It increases the risk of cancers of the head, neck, throat, oesophagus and oral cavity as well as various dental diseases.
Tobacco use contributes to poverty by diverting the household expenses to tobacco. The economic cost of tobacco use is substantial. It also includes significant health care costs for treating the disease caused by tobacco. Tobacco attributes more to morbidity and mortality that leads to the loss of human capital.
Hereby I conclude with a quote.
“Stop smoking,
Stop tobacco consuming,
Save lungs for a healthy living,
Be smart, don’t start smoking,
Say no to tobacco.”
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