“Come on mate just one, we all are. You scared or something? What is one going to do anyway?”
The problem is if this teenage boy accepts that cigarette he would be a part of the 6,000 people below the age of 18 in America to start smoking in that day. 2,000 of those teens will keep smoking. That’s 800,000 new teen smokers every year that are inhaling 4,000 chemical compounds into their body, 40 of them are cancer causing agents and it’s all passed through just one cigarette. That teen could potentially join the 396,000 smokers who started as teens that die each year from smoking, and that’s only in America. So that’s what one cigarette could do.
So Why Do Teenagers Smoke?
Teenagers can start smoking as a result of peer pressure. Feeling weak if they don’t accept a cigarette or fear of rejection can be felt by the teen. Quit Victoria executive director; Fiona Sharkie says that “smoking is part of socialization.” Social groups are where peer pressure occurs and therefore sometimes smoking. Peer pressure is one of the main creators of teenage smokers today. Teens may also smoke as a result of imitation. Product placement in movies and media causes teens to copy their role models. This same cause relates to parents or family members as well. Many teens may grow up in a smoking environment resulting in addiction themselves.
How Bad is Smoking for You Really?
There are many health issues that are consequences of smoking. Some a major some are minor but all damaging. There are many dangerous chemicals in one cigarette. Chemicals such as benzene- a petrol additive, ammonia- found in toilet cleaner, acetone- present in nail polish remover, tar, nicotine- addictive drug, arsenic- rat poison, etc. Many chemicals in cigarettes are actually poison that can kill someone in high enough doses. So the deadly health issues that result from this gradual poisoning are heart disease, strokes, emphysema. Other smoking related health issues... [continues]
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(2013, 02). It's Not a Joke to Choke on Smoke. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 02, 2013, from http://www.studymode.com/essays/It-s-Not-A-Joke-To-Choke-1430865.html
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