Is the Cigarette Tax Enough To Prevent Smoking?

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Smoking cigarettes have negative effects on not only the people who smoke, but also the people around them and the environment. Smoking cigarettes lead to many diseases and negative health effects, such as lung cancer, emphysema, and heart disease. Second hand smoke can lead to the same side effects. However, the dangers of second hand smoke tend to be generally greater than that of first hand smoke, which is what the smoker inhales. Because of all the negative effects of smoking, the sale of cigarettes has been taxed heavily. The ingredients in cigarettes, especially flavored cigarettes, make it difficult for smokers to quit. In the last few years, both federal and state taxes have increased for tobacco products in the hopes of trying to reduce the number of smokers. The revenue from the tax is used to fund several health related companies. However, some smokers have started to buy cigarettes illegally in order to avoid the tax. Cigarettes are a type of tobacco product which contain several hundred ingredients. Although the majority of these ingredients have not been proved to be harmful, the cigarette smoke which results from these ingredients burning have over four hundred toxins, about forty of which are carcinogenic. Three of the best known ingredients that cause negative side effects are nicotine, tar, and carbon monoxide. Nicotine is an addictive substance, which is lethal in large quantities. Tar causes a sticky buildup to form on the lungs, which reduce the elasticity that is necessary for the alveoli in the lungs to be able to be an effective respiratory surface. Carbon monoxide competes with oxygen to bind on hemoglobin in red blood cells, which makes it difficult for cellular respiration to occur. These are onl... ... middle of paper ... ... Men Sell Illegal Smokes - NYTimes.com." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/05/nyregion/05loosie.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=cigarettes&st=cse (accessed April 13, 2011). Krugman, Paul R., and Robin Wells. Microeconomics . New York: Worth, 2005. Mussenden, Sean. "Federal Cigarette Tax Going Up." Federal Cigarette Tax Going Up. www.wkrg.com/financial/article/federal_cigarette_tax_going_up/23323/Feb-05-2009_8-29-am/ (accessed April 13, 2011). "The Economic Impact of Smoking." Social Costs of Smoking. www.globalink.org/tobacco/9910eco/Pages/04SocialCostsinDetail.html (accessed April 13, 2011). Wilson, Duff. "F.D.A. Urged to Review Use of Menthol in Cigarettes - NYTimes.com." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/19/business/19tobacco.html (accessed April 13, 2011).

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