TOBACCOGREG TUCKER

DEFENITION

TOBACCO - Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as an organic pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, it is used in some medicines. It is most commonly used as recreational drug, and is a valuable cash crop for countries such as Cuba, China and United States.

"tobacco." Student Encyclopædia. Britannica Online for Kids. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Web. 26 July 2010

DEMOGRAPHIC

PEOPLE WHO ARE MORE LIKELY TO USE TOBACCO… Men, more likely to smoke than women. The poor more likely than the rich. People in developing countries.

As of 2000, smoking is practiced by some 1.22 billion people

The World Health Organization. "The Global Burden of Disease: 2004 Update." (2004): 1-150.

HEALTH RISKS

The risks associated with tobacco use include diseases affecting the heart and lungs, with smoking being a major risk factor for heart attacks, strokes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema, and cancer (particularly lung cancer, cancers of the larynx and mouth, and pancreatic cancer).

The World Health Organization estimates that tobacco caused 5.4 million deaths in 2004 and 100 million deaths over the course of the 20th century.

The World Health Organization. "The Global Burden of Disease: 2004 Update." (2004): 1-150.

According to the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, As of 1994, there are at least 599 additives, other than

tobacco, to American cigarettes.

Smoke for Thought…

Chronic tobacco intake can cause heart and lung disease.

As well as cancer of the larynx and the pancreas.

Most American cigarettes contain not only tobacco but methane, arsenic, carbon monoxide, ammonia and paint.

Tobacco products caused over 100 million deaths over the course of the 20th century.