Smoking and Smokeless Tobacco
Alternate Names : Cigar Smoking, Cigarette Smoking, Pipe Smoking, Second-Hand Smoke, Smokeless Snuff, Tobacco Use
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Description
Tobacco is a plant grown for its leaves, which are smoked, chewed, or sniffed for a variety of effects. It is considered an addictive substance because it contains the chemical nicotine.
In addition to nicotine, tobacco contains over 19 known cancer-causing chemicals (most are collectively known as "tar") and more than 4,000 other chemicals. These include acetone, ammonia, carbon monoxide, cyanide, methane, propane, and butane.
Over 38 million people in the United States have successfully quit smoking. Another two-thirds of current smokers say they would like to quit. Despite this desire and a steady decline in the total number of smokers, there are still around 50 million Americans who smoke.
And, while the number of cigarette smokers in the United States has dropped over recent years, the number of smokeless tobacco users has steadily risen. This trend is likely related to the false belief that smokeless tobacco is safe. It is NOT. Smokeless tobacco carries many of the same health risks as cigarettes. Some people who want to stop smoking, but who still crave the nicotine effects, turn to smokeless tobacco wrongly thinking that they are doing something good for themselves.
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