Smoking is a wonderful,
Sarah Montiel
sensuous pleasure.
Smoking, I wait
for the man I love
Tobacco was discovered by Europeans on their voyages of exploration to what they called the New World. Since ancient times, it was cultivated in the Antilles, in the Andes, and in North America where it was used in religious ceremonies, a celebration of marital ceremonies, births, or as a sign of closing agreements, everyone knows the expression “smoking the pipe of peace”. Europeans were fascinated by the flavor that this plant gave off when burned and inhaled through the mouth, so they soon acquired the habit of smoking cigars, that is, rolls of dehydrated tobacco, also called cigars, Habanos, or tobacco in pipes, and promoted extensive cultivation of this plant in the Americas to market it.
Therapeutic and relaxing properties were attributed to tobacco. In Europe they began to smoke it wrapped in paper, thus the cigarette was created, and by the 19th-century machines were invented to produce them in series. In 1925 the first cigarette filter was born with the purpose of reducing smoke during combustion. It was in the middle of the 20th century that tobacco consumption was associated with the development of cancer.
In the United States, there was a time when advertisers featured entertainment or sports personalities promoting cigarette smoking. Tobacco companies became very powerful because of the level of addiction caused by nicotine, a substance contained in tobacco. In the middle of the last century, these companies sponsored several television series such as I Love Lucy, one of the most-watched programs in the history of the media.
They were also sponsors of the famous newscasts of Douglas Edwards, Walter Cronkite, and David Susskind, the latter smoking countless cigarettes during presentations and interviews. Tobacco companies came to sponsor political campaigns or motorsports, some even offered coupons that by collecting a certain amount could be exchanged for gifts for constant smokers.
One of the most remembered advertising campaigns in the world is the Marlboro Man, created by the outstanding publicist Leo Burnett during the 60s to 90s, with the unforgettable background music of Henri Mancini. Those campaigns featured charismatic actors like Wayne McLaren, David McLean, and Robert Norris portraying smoking cowboys, and tamers of wild horses crossing the plains. It should be noted that sales of that brand of cigarettes increased considerably. Subtle warnings were already appearing then about the health consequences of smoking.
Around 1990, actor Wayne McLaren had a long agony of lung cancer, he said, because of his addiction to tobacco-caused during his work in cigarette ads and launched a campaign against the tobacco company for having made him sick, without warning you of the fatal consequences of using your product. The same thing happened to David McLean whose tobacco addiction began at the age of 12 and was diagnosed with pulmonary emphysema in the 1980s. After his death, his family accused the company of forcing him to consume up to five packs of cigarettes during sessions. photographic. However, other actors who participated in that advertising campaign remained in reasonable health, such as Robert Norris who lived 90 years and died in 2019.
Today it is known that 16% of the world population is addicted to cigarettes; an object that is far from being just tobacco wrapped in paper, since it is a mixture of chemical components. It is estimated that it contains 50% tobacco, 30% reconstituted tobacco, and 20% tobacco expanded by carbon dioxide. In addition to a list of additives to enhance its flavor, and preserve its moisture that is not visible in the consumer warnings and could be arsenic, benzene, beryllium, cadmium, and tar, the latter is produced when tobacco is burned and adheres to the lungs. All these substances are toxic and directly cause different types of cancer and cardiovascular diseases.
Today it is known that tobacco claims the lives of eight million people each year and of those one million deaths occur in the Americas. Therefore, since 1987 the WHO has declared May 31, World No Tobacco Day, with this it is intended to remind the world population about the dangers of its use. This year 2022, the celebration focuses on the environmental consequences of cigarette consumption. Millions of trees are cut down to make the paper that wraps them, the use of other resources for filters that contain plastics made with non-biodegradable materials, plus the disposal of millions of cigarette butts or remains every day around the world. To learn more about this event visit: https://www.who.int/en/campaigns/world-no-tobacco-day
Being the only legal product that can cause death to those who use it, it costs governments to apply public health measures since the tobacco industry is powerful and has a great influence on society. Most people who smoke try their first cigarette before adulthood. Tobacco advertising features famous people who are role models or who appear in movies or on social media and encourage smoking. On the other hand, the display of tobacco in stores or points of sale creates the impression that it is a socially acceptable product like any other. The tobacco industry is persuasive and the promotion of this product creates addiction.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, the advertising of tobacco companies in the media has been prohibited in the Americas, in addition, governments have imposed taxes on cigarette consumption, which increases the price of tobacco and constitutes an effective measure to reduce its consumption and encourage abandoning that habit. Governments benefit because it allows them to increase their tax revenues, which in turn can be used for health programs.
To the prohibition of advertising, the dissemination of pictograms and images that cover 50% of the surfaces of cigarette packages was added in order to warn of the serious health consequences of high consumption. It is intended to prevent youth from starting this habit and the images transmit strong messages to the entire population, including the non-literate. On the other hand, banning cigarettes for minors conveys the message that smoking is adult behavior and makes it more attractive to young people. A total ban at points of sale could reduce global tobacco consumption.
As an aggravating factor to the situation, the growing consumption of so-called vapers that, by not exhaling steam but smoke, reinforces the erroneous belief that they are “healthier” than cigarettes and a new mass of nicotine consumers has been generated, with the same adverse effects as cigarettes.
In 2008 the who published the technical package called MPOWER for its acronym in English, it consists of six interventions and each one reflects a disposition to overcome tobacco consumption that governments should follow.
M (Monitor) Monitor tobacco consumption and the application of prevention policies.
P (Protect) protect people from second-hand tobacco smoke.
O (Offer) Offer help to quit tobacco use
W (Warn) Warn about the dangers of tobacco
E (Enforce) Enforce prohibitions on advertising, promotion, and sponsorship.
R (Raise) Raise taxes on tobacco.
Among people who smoke, three out of four say they want to quit. For many, it is possible to do it on your own. The dissemination of information, nicotine substitution therapies, access to free low-cost medications to reduce addiction, as well as advice from mental health specialists to find out the origin of the habit, are auxiliary measures to abandon addiction that must be applied in all countries.
Exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke has been shown to contain risk factors for which there is no safe level of protection for nonsmokers. The diseases it causes are myocardial infarction, various types of cancer, and deadly lung diseases, which is why smoke-free environments have been legalized in common and public places in many countries. It has been claimed that the only way to protect is to provide 100% smoke-free environments.
At Del Pueblo Funeral Home, we believe that quitting a habit of negative health consequences contributes to improving the environment and consequently the quality of life of our loved ones, it is positive in many aspects, however, we also believe that the balance between pleasure and discipline represent ways of living and enjoying during our ephemeral passage through this world. We like to inform and leave the free will of the personal decisions of those who read these articles, that’s why we remind you that we are making the most difficult moments easy.
