Road of Life: Cancer Prevention For Kids - Influence of Tobacco Use

Influence of Tobacco Use

Tobacco use contributes to 440,000 deaths annually in the U.S. and is accompanied by $75 billion in medical expenses. It is the most preventable cause of disease and death in the country. 3,900 U.S. children ages 12–17 years old smoke their first cigarette every day. The Centers for Disease Control warns that “of all addictive behaviors, cigarette smoking is the one most likely to become established during adolescence”.

The effects of cigarettes on young people include respiratory and non-respiratory problems, nicotine addiction, and their potential as a “gateway drug.” Long term effects of tobacco use range from minor, treatable complications to death. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) agrees with the evidence: the most consistent finding, over decades of research, is the strong association between tobacco use and cancers of many sites. Specific to lung cancer, NCI reports that “rates in the United States have mirrored smoking patterns, with increases in smoking being followed by dramatic increases in lung cancer death rates and, more recently, decreases in smoking followed by decreased in lung cancer death rates in men”. Following current smoking trends, as many as 6.4 million of today’s youth could suffer smoking-related premature deaths.