Michaela Calderon

Health 1050
Fall Semester 2016

Why cant you stop smoking?

The reality of tobacco
How many times a day do you see someone with a cigarette? If you really think about it
and pay close attention, the numbers can be very high. I recently went to a store to get some
customer service help, and the lady in front of me in line went for a smoke break two times while
I was there. It is common and it is everywhere. Dont people know how bad it is for you? Dont
they know how it smells? Do they not realize the toll it can take on their children or their loved
ones, or the ways it can damage others health? They do though. That is tobacco, and that is
addiction. They didnt know what they were really getting into just like a lot of us when we try
something new or are pressured; when it comes to tobacco though the price tag of addiction is a
heavy price to pay.
Tobacco is a plant that grows primarily in North and South America. It is also in the same
family as the potato, pepper and the poisonous nightshade. In ages as early as 1 B.C., American
Indians began using tobacco for medicinal and religious practices. In October of 1492,
Christopher Columbus came to the Americas and was offered tobacco leaves as gifts from the
American Indians. (Boston University Medical Center, 1999) The tobacco plant soon became
one of the most lucrative trades in history next to sugar and slaves. (Charles Levinthal, 2014)
After Columbus encounter with tobacco, sailors brought it back to Europe where it began to be
planted. Tobacco grew popular among Europeans because it was believed to hold many healing

properties. In the 1600s, as the popularity of tobacco continued to rise, many people began using
it as currency. Although tobacco became popular in the Americas and Europe, other countries
such as Russia, Turkey, Japan and China condemned the use of tobacco very heavily. Although
the penalty for using tobacco products weighed heavily, that did not stop the rapid spread of the
drug. (Levinthal, 2014) In 1776, tobacco helped to finance the American revolutionary war by
serving as collateral for loans that America had borrowed from France. Cigarette use became
extremely popular among soldiers during World War I. During World War II, cigarette use was
still popular and was even included in soldiers rations. In the 1950s, scientists began linking
cigarette use with health problems like lung cancer. (Boston University Medical Center, 1999)
Continuing through the 1990s, many more restrictions came upon smoking. No smoking in
public spaces, no smoking on plane rides lasting longer than two hours and the like. Tobacco
companies also faced many lawsuits from customers because of the negative health effects they
were facing. Soon after, tobacco companies began including adverse health effects on tobacco
products packaging. (Boston University Medical Center, 1999) Although people know the
negative toll it can take on their health, it is the addictive aspects of the drug that keep the people
coming back for more.
The Center of Disease Control reports that cigarettes (tobacco) are the leading cause of
preventable disease and death in the United States. It accounts for one in every five deaths in this
country. Out of the 480,000 deaths per year in the United States, 41,000 of those deaths are a
result of secondhand smoking. Worldwide, smoking causes approximately 6 million deaths per
year. It is estimated that this number will elevate to 8 million by the year 2030 (Center of Disease
Control, 2015).

There are many other negative effects that happen to the body besides death. Smoking can cause
an array of different illnesses including cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung diseases, diabetes, and
chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases like emphysema and chronic bronchitis. (Center of
Disease Control, 2015)
Due to contrary belief and the popularity surrounding the drug, not everyone was on
board with smoking. Although it was seen as sophisticated and the popular thing to do, it still
repulsed some people just like it does today. Though little was known about tobacco people
became aware of its addictive properties as well. Nicotine was way more powerful than they
knew. A quote from the text, Drugs, Behavior, and Modern Society by Charles Levinthal refers
to King James I of England in 1604 said, He that taketh tobacco saith he cannot leave it, it doth
bewitch him.
In 1998, The United States created The Tobacco Settlement of 1998. This settlement was
created to resolve claims that states should be compensated for costs of treating patients with
smoking-related illnesses. This settlement created an agreement that the tobacco industry would
pay the states a total of approximately $246 billion in annual installments over a twenty-four
year period. It was also agreed upon that tobacco companies refrain from marketing to those
under the age of eighteen and to pay an annual amount of $24 million to research foundations
dedicated to reducing smoking among adolescents.
Smoking tobacco causes a lot of health problems, and creates health concerns for the
user; that is an obvious of using tobacco recreationally. Smoking increases carbon monoxide
build up in your body leading to cardiovascular disease. It also loads your body with tar that can
cause cancer in different parts of your body (Levinthal, 2014). There is so much more that

cigarettes/tobacco does to your body. It can also have effects on the users physical appearance.
The substance makes you smell, turns your teeth yellow, and makes your lips and gums bleed. So
really, why cant we stop? It is a bewitching substance called nicotine.
Nicotine is a drug that is found in tobacco. This drug is toxic and produces an extreme
dependence, which is what makes the drug so addicting and such a hard habit to quit. Nicotine is
found in pesticides and insecticides and also your everyday cigarette. The dose is small, only
about 1 mg average per cigarette (Levinthal, 2014). The nicotine is what gives the cigarette the
kick. It stimulates the nicotine receptors and signals the brain to release dopamine. This can
relax the user while stimulating there concentration and sustain their performance (Levinthal,
2014).
As people try to quit or stop smoking then that is when the nicotine dependence shows
how much it truly has rooted the person. Within hours a person can feel common withdrawal
symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, irritability, decreased heart rate etc. They have a strong
craving for another cigarette (Levinthal, 2014). In the text, Drugs, Behavior, and Modern
Society by Charles Levinthal a study is reported between illicit drug dependence and cigarette
dependence; 74% said that quitting smoking was harder or just as hard as quitting an illicit drug
of their choice. This is disheartening, this is why we cant simply just ask the question why cant
you quit? Smokers are aware that tobacco is bad they just have a major battle to fight with their
brains.
Quitting the habit of smoking is a very difficult one to quit, but in the long run there are
so many health benefits tied to putting down the cigarettes for good. These health benefits begin
as early as twenty minutes after your last cigarette. At this time, your heart rate begins to work at

its normal level again instead of being elevated. Two hours after your last cigarette, blood
pressure levels return to normal, and blood circulation throughout the body begins to improve. 12
hours after quitting, the dangerous levels of carbon monoxide that have been built up in the body
begin to deteriorate, letting oxygen levels in the blood increase. 48 hours after quitting, sense of
taste and smell begin to form again. This is because new nerve endings are beginning to regrow,
causing these sensations to improve. It takes three days for the nicotine to be completely
removed from your system, and this is where many users struggle. Because there is no nicotine
in the body, cravings are much stronger and harder to ignore. It takes approximately two weeks
for a smokers withdrawal symptoms to subside completely (Healthline, 2016). About one third
of all smokers try to quit each year and only about 4% of those succeed on their first attempt
(Levinthal, 2014).
There are ways to quit and most of those ways are with the help of others, mainly medical
help. I have a sister who smokes about a pack a day, she never does it around me and she often
tells me that she is trying to quit. After I read into this topic I do want to say that Im much more
sympathetic to her because I was one of those people who would always say why cant you
stop? Smoking is so bad for you! she knows all that. That isnt what is going to help her. Social
support groups, quit lines, prescription drugs, and family support are what is going to help those
who are struggling. Before you support you need to understand. I hope that my research on the
real harmfulness of nicotine addiction can help you support someone you know too so they can
eventually kick the habit!

References
Levinthal, C. (2014). Drugs, Behavior and Modern Society (8th ed.). Pearson Education.
Current Cigarette Smoking Among Adults United States, 20052014. (2015,
November 13). Current Cigarette Smoking Among Adults United States, 2005
2014, 1- http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6444a2.htm?
s_cid=mm6444a2_w
Boston University Medical Center, The History of Tobacco 1999http://www.academic.udayton.edu/health/syllabi/tobacco/history.htm
Healthline- What happens when you quit smoking? 2016http://www.healthline.com/health-slideshow/quit-smoking-timeline#8