Cigarettes: A Harmful Drug That Should Be Banned Argumentative Essay Sample

Cigarettes are killers; they do harm to those who smoke and to those who are exposed to second hand smoke. Cigarettes are responsible for murdering too many individuals each year. Cigarettes cause individuals an array of health problems, and cigarette smoke is also detrimental for the environment. With the amount of damage cigarettes can cause to individuals and the environment, it seems the right and only course of action would be to ban cigarettes completely. There are some who disagree because the impact it will have on the economy, but these individuals’ are not concerned with the vast amount of harm that cigarettes cause individuals and the environment. The best way to ensure that cigarettes will not cause harm is to stop the manufacturing and production of cigarettes, which will lead to a healthier population and stop harm cigarettes cause to the environment.
Cigarettes are responsible for an array of diseases and health problems in individuals throughout the world. According to the American Heart Association, “Smoking robs you of your good cholesterol, cigarette smoking alone increases your risk of coronary heart disease” and increased the risk of strokes, atherosclerosis, and peripheral artery disease” (American Heart Association). With the damage smoking cigarettes causes on the cardiovascular system, it would seem a valid and warranted to ban cigarettes completely. The Center for Disease Control reported, “Smoking causes diminished overall health, increased absenteeism from work, and increased health care utilization and cost” (Center for Disease Control).
Smoking cigarettes also increase an individual’s risk for an early death. The Center for Disease Control reported that “Cigarette smoking causes more than 480,000 deaths each year in the United States. This is about one in five deaths” (Center for Disease Control). The number of deaths smoking causes is a well-known statistic, and many people know the vast amount of deaths smoking causes. Sadly, with this information readily available, there are still millions of individuals who choose to light up and continue to smoke cigarettes. Furthermore, the Center for Disease Control reported that “Smoking causes about 90% (or 9 out of 10) of all lung cancer deaths in men and women. More women die from lung cancer each year than from breast cancer” (Center for Disease Control). The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids reported, “Smoking kills more people than alcohol, AIDS, car accidents, illegal drugs, murders, and suicides combined” (Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids). This warrants the claim that cigarettes should be banned completely, which would cause a dramatic decrease in the number of individuals who die from cigarette related health problems each year.
There is also a burden placed on the health care system from the impact of smoking cigarettes. According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, “The total annual public and private health care expenditures cause by smoking is $170 billion” (Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids). The health care system must overcompensate to accommodate for the health problems that arise from smoking cigarettes. It would raise the question: What would these funds be used for if smoking was completely banned? Perhaps the funds would go into research for AIDS or childhood cancer, but until smoking is banned there will continue to be a burden on the health care system. The health care system should not be burdened by the damage cigarette smoking causes each year.
There are some individuals who argue that smoking should not be banned, because tobacco is a major cash crop in certain areas in the United States. If there were not cigarettes, then the tobacco farmers would suffer and not be able to recover. However, there have been many farmers who have changed what crops they harvest. If cigarettes are banned, then there would be a major economic problem impacting tobacco farmers. Aside from the tobacco farmers, these individuals also argue that thousands of individuals involved with the production, manufacturing, packaging, and delivering of cigarettes will be out of jobs. As a result, there will be a major impact on the economy as a whole if cigarettes are banned. They feel cigarettes are a profitable way to help boost the economy and keep it stable.
Although it is true that if cigarettes were banned there would be an impact on tobacco farmers, but this does not warrant the amount of deaths their product causes every year. Tobacco is not the only harmful substance found in cigarettes, but it is the primary ingredient found in cigarettes. The world is constantly changing, and people should be willing to change as well. Why would tobacco farmers want to contribute to millions of deaths worldwide? Is it because they do not want to accept that they are contributing to people dying from smoking and second hand smoke.
Although there would be a major impact on the economy if smoking is banned, it still does not compare to the lives that are lost to smoking cigarettes. What is more important? Money or the lives of individuals? If cigarettes are banned, then there will be an impact on the economy. However, there will also be a decrease in the amount of funds the health care system spends every year from the impact of smoking cigarettes. According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, “Kids under 18 alive today who will ultimately die from smoking (unless smoking rates decline) is approximately 5.6 million and people in the USA who currently suffer from smoking caused illnesses are approximately 16 million” (Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids). Jobs that are lost can be regained with new industry; crops that are not able to be planted anymore can be replaced with crops that are good for individuals, but lives that are lost to smoking cigarettes cannot be regained.
Ultimately, cigarettes are killers. They are extremely addictive and cause health problems that are not able to be reversed. There once was a day when the famous Marlboro Man seemed iconic and suave. There was a time when cigarettes were accepted; people could smoke on planes, at shopping malls, and even hospitals. However, these days are long gone and in the past. The emerging research that has been done on the impact of smoking cigarettes has shown that they can cause terrible health problems, and that they can kill. Even individuals who choose not to smoke are subject to health problems due to second hand smoke. With the evidence that has emerged and proven that smoking can kill, it would only be logical to ban this harmful object completely. Cigarettes are not good; cigarettes do not make an individual look cool. In fact, cigarettes are one of the most harmful drugs that can be consumed. For the betterment of all, cigarettes should be banned. If cigarettes were banned, then the outcome would be a healthier population with a cleaner environment. The Center for Disease Control reported, “If nobody smoked, one of every three cancer deaths in the United States would not happen” (Center for Disease Control). One must ask himself or herself, which is more important: Money or health?

Works Cited

American Heart Association. How Cigarettes Damage Your Body. 07 Feb. 2015. Web.
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/QuitSmoking/How-Cigarettes-
Damage-Your-Body_UCM_322735_Article.jsp#mainContent
The Center for Disease Control. Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking. 07 Feb. 2015. Web.
http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/health_effects/effects_cig_
smoking/?mobile=nocontent#definition
Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. Toll of Tobacco in the United States of America. 07 Feb.
2015. Web. http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/reserach/factsheets/pdf/0072.pdf