Facts about Smoking

• Smoking kills more than 37,000 Canadians each year – six times more than vehicle collisions, suicides, murders and AIDS combined.
• Cigarettes contain more than 4,000 chemicals, 69 of which can cause cancer. With every cigarette, a person inhales:Tar,Mercury,Lead,Carbon monoxide, Ddt (an insecticide),Acetone (nail polish remover),Arsenic (white ant poison), and Hydrogen cyanide (poisonous gas).
• Smoking is the No. 1 preventable cause of death in Canada.
• There are some 4.2 million Canadians 15+ and older who smoke.
• Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death for men and women in Canada.
• About 3.9% of Canadian children 0-17 years are exposed to secondhand smoke at home.
• It's not just people who smoke who are at risk. Breathing in second-hand smoke causes over 800 deaths in Canadian non-smokers from lung cancer and heart disease every year.
• The average smoker in the U.S. spends US$1,500 to US$3,300 a year.
• 15 billion cigarettes are smoked worldwide every day.
• The first European who learned to smoke from the natives was arrested back home because people thought he was possessed by the devil.
• More than a third of the world's smokers are Chinese.
• John Adams, 2nd president of the USA, started smoking at the age of eight.
• 8.6 million people in the U.S. live with a serious illness caused by smoking.
• Smoking makes your hair turn gray faster.
• Smoking makes the risk of a heart attack 200% to 400% greater than that of nonsmokers.
• The history of smoking can be dated to as early as 5000 BC, and has been recorded in many different cultures across the world.
• The world's largest producer of cigarettes is a company owned by the Chinese government.
• Urea, the main ingredient in urine, is added to cigarettes to enhance their flavor.
• The word 'Nicotine' is derived from Frenchman Jean Nicot who introduced tobacco to France in 1560.
• Within 48 hours of quitting smoking, your nerve endings begin to regrow and your senses of smell and taste begin to return to normal.
• Chewing tobacco (smokeless or spit tobacco) can lead to nicotine addiction, oral cancer, gum disease, and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, including heart attacks
• Tobacco is often the first drug used by kids who use alcohol and illegal drugs like marijuana.
• Every day, approximately 3,450 teens in the U.S. try their first cigarette. About 25% will become daily smokers.