Health Consequences of Smoking-Policy Brief
Smoking is a top cause of avoidable diseases and preventable deaths in the US. Generally, smoking harms most of the organs in the human body, causes many illnesses and deteriorates the health of the smokers. People who opt not to smoke or quit smoking avert the risk of contracting diseases linked to smoking. Smoking is a top reason for immature deaths in America. There are more health risks attached to smoking than the use of alcohol. Some of the killer conditions linked to smoking are chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stroke, cardiovascular disease and other heart related diseases, lung cancer, respiratory diseases and cancer in almost all parts of the human body (CDC, 2018). Although in the past few years smoking has been declining in the United States, there is still much more that has to be done to help people quit smoking. A drop in the smoking rates is hardly enough compared to the health risks associated with smoking. The nation should aim towards ensuring zero illnesses and deaths caused by smoking: ORDER YOUR PAPER NOW
In 2016, at least 15 of every 1000 United States adults were smokers according to a research conducted by the CDC. This figure translates to 15.5 percent of the population aged 18 years and above. This implies that an estimate of 38 million people were smokers in 2016 (CDC, 2018). Additionally, 16 million residents lived with smoking-related illnesses. Smoking accounts for almost 500,000 deaths annually. In every five deaths that occur in the US, one can be attributed to smoking.
Essentially there are some subpopulations in America which are more vulnerable to getting involved in smoking than others. Currently, the key determinants of engaging in the behavior are gender, age, race, education, sexual orientation, psychological state and poverty level or social class. Some regions in the United States have higher smoking rates with the highest being among the population living in the Midwest region and the lowest in West. West Virginia has the highest number of adult smokers in the United States with Kentucky having the highest rate of cancer deaths. Males are more likely to engage in smoking than females (CDC, 2018): End of Preview: ORDER YOUR PAPER NOW
References
(CDC), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018, February 15). Current Cigarette Smoking Among Adults in the United States. Retrieved from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/adult_data/cig_smoking/index.htm
Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2018, January 17). Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking. Retrieved from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/health_effects/effects_cig_smoking/index.htm
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