| It wasn't too long ago that tobacco companies actually | | | | - Collateral damage to the immune system and cellular |
| touted the 'benefits' of cigarette smoking. Things like: | | | | DNA from carcinogen exposure |
| "Breath more oxygen!" or "Tobacco is natural!" Today, | | | | - A major contributor to the leading causes of death, |
| however, it's all too obvious that cigarettes kill. Or is it? | | | | including stroke, heart disease, and cancer |
| That's the problem. Despite decades of scientific | | | | And these are just the deadly issues. They don't even |
| research which talks about the damage done to our | | | | begin to address the physical appearance or social |
| bodies by smoking - many of us still think we can | | | | concerns. Things like stained hands, skin, clothing. |
| escape this trauma. So let's talk about this damage, | | | | Rotted gums and teeth. Aging and wrinkling of the skin. |
| and its exacting collateral. | | | | Repulsive odor. The fact that second hand smoke |
| To start with, Nicotine is one of the deadliest poisons in | | | | inhalation is worse for others around you. Induced |
| existence. It exceeds the status of strychnine, | | | | allergic reactions. Stealing your time and money. |
| rattlesnake venom, arsenic, and cyanide. As if this | | | | We learned to depend on this crap just to get through |
| weren't enough, cigarettes contain over 4,000 other | | | | our days. But it's nothing more than a bad nightmare |
| chemicals, 200 known poisons. The process of inhaling | | | | created by ultra-greedy corporations trying to keep |
| replaces the oxygen content in your blood with deadly | | | | you confused. They want young people to think |
| Carbon Monoxide (CO2) - the same byproduct of | | | | smoking is cool - so they start early and get hooked |
| your car's gasoline engine or your home furnace. In | | | | from peer pressure. They want older people to keep |
| combination with the other chemicals, a whole host of | | | | smoking so they can line their pockets. They want us |
| problems then erupts. These include, but are not limited | | | | to think a cigarette will make us feel better about our |
| to: | | | | real problems - even though they really don't. But |
| - Significant brain damage resulting from lack of | | | | brainwashing does work, unfortunately.. and cigarettes |
| oxygen and direct exposure to poisons | | | | keep getting sold. |
| - Annihilation of lung tissue and red blood cells, | | | | Please, if we choose to believe in ourselves, if we |
| decimating your aerobic endurance | | | | choose to care about something greater than |
| - Hardening of the arteries (arteriosclerosis), destruction | | | | ourselves, we can make a choice to stop the death |
| of join tissue (arthritis, grout) | | | | and destruction before its too late. These companies |
| - Turning major organs including the pancreas, liver, and | | | | are destroying our lives, destroying our world. Quit for |
| kidneys into toxic waste dumps | | | | yourself, for your friends, for humanity. You can make |
| - Staining and corroding teeth, gums, taste-buds, and | | | | your life better. |
| olfactory organs (smell) | | | | |