Smoking Ban - a Social Issue

Smoking is one of the most popular and most harmful human habits. Everyone has been exposed to a second-hand smoke, at least once in his, or her lifetime in public places, like restaurant, bar, or even at work. Smoking in public places, is a personal choice by the smokers that nonsmokers had a little control over. It exposes them to unnecessary second-hand smoke that poses a health hazard to include children. The enactment of public smoking is now regulated, even totally banned in many cities all over United States. Because of strong public support on banning smoking in public places, within 10 years or earlier public smoking will be banned entirely in United States.

Background information:

Smoking ban is a controversial social issue due to health risk associated with second-hand smoke and individual rights of smokers. For the nonsmoker's, they do not see any reasons why not to ban smoking in public. A smoker, however, feels like it is a violation of their individual rights and they should be able to smoke anywhere they choose.

Smoking in public places should be ban entirely because of much health related issue associated with secondhand smoke. Imagine that your wife and kids are sitting at a restaurant eating your lunch, and there are a lot of people sitting next to them smoking cigarettes. As they burst out their smoke in their direction, they are exposed to the combination of smoke from the burning cigarettes exhaled by the smokers that contain a combination of 60 known cancer-causing chemicals in it, health concerns begin to emerge from being expose to the fumes. Being annoyed at the smokers is the reasons why the majority of citizen find ways to prevent them from smoking in public.

Secondhand smoke exposure also causes lung disease, including lung cancer. Nonsmokers who exposed to secondhand smoke have as much as a 30 percent higher chance of developing lung cancer than if they were not exposed to the smoke. This is not an issue for every one, of course, but for people employed in a certain place like a bar or club; there is no way to avoid secondhand smoke exposure.

The American Cancer Society reports that 87 percent of all lung cancer deaths are directly related to smoking or exposure to secondhand cigarette smoke. Other lung conditions, such as emphysema and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) are also caused by smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke. Over 75 percent of all deaths from COPD are directly related to smoking or second-hand smoke exposure.

Smoking during pregnancy is one of several leading causes of complication and birth defect that can lead to the newborn's death. It also reduces the possibility of having a normal childbirth. Women should not smoke or be around smokers while pregnant because of the consequences that can seriously affect the health of the unborn child and themselves. Consequences of smoking during