Banning Cigarettes Persuasive Essay

The FDA should have control over tobacco products

According to the Center of Disease Control, smoking is responsible for 480,000 deaths a year, and causes another 42,000 deaths due to secondhand smoke in America (“Fast”). It is the number one cause of preventable death in America, and something needs to be done to stop this monster of a drug. There have been many attempts to stop the juggernaut that is smoking in the U.S, but none of them have succeeded. Although many people believe higher cigarette taxes won’t stop the issue, cigarettes products need to be regulated by the government and FDA to reduce the use of cigarettes.

The use of cigarettes has major health consequences on the user. Like mentioned before, cigarettes are the number one

By monitoring what is inside the cigarettes, they can reduce the addictiveness of cigarettes and allow for people to have an easier time quitting the habit of smoking. They don’t want to issue a ban on cigarettes, and instead help people to overcome their addiction by reducing the toxic chemicals included in cigarettes, and take away the addictive substances (Kennedy). As I stated above, only one out of the seven smokers in my family has been able to quit. Smokers have a penchant towards cigarettes and they are trapped after they try the first one. They may not like the taste of it, but the next day their bodies will be craving one, and they won’t be able to fight it for long. In addition to making tobacco less addictive, the FDA would be able to make cigarettes less deadly by making sure no harmful ingredients are put into tobacco. According to K.H Ginzel, a professor of pharmacology and toxicology at the University of Arkansas says that, “Cigarette smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals, including 43 known cancer-causing (carcinogenic) compounds and 400 other toxins. These include nicotine, tar, and carbon monoxide, as well as formaldehyde, ammonia, hydrogen cyanide, arsenic, and DDT” (Ginzel). Tobacco companies have tried to say they have made their cigarettes less detrimental to smokers health, but they dissemble the truth. It is irrefutable to say the it’s ok to use these chemicals in their products. Arsenic is used in rat poison and DDT is a banned insecticide, and their are many more dangerous chemicals in cigarettes. Smokers are not cognizant of the harmful substances put into their bodies, but the FDA can make it safer for