According to the American Lung Association, when a cigarette is lit about 7,000 chemicals burn going into the smoker’s lungs and into the air around them.

Of those chemicals, 69 of them are known to be cancerous. That still leaves more than 6,000 chemicals that can be poisonous, getting into the air that everyone breathes.

People have the right to smoke. They get to make that choice on their own and deal with the positives and negatives that come with it.

But smoking is also extremely harmful to not only them but the people around them who walk through it. Secondhand smoke is known to be dangerous just as much as being the person who has the cigarette up to their mouth. 

At least when it is done outside, the smoky air can be taken over by fresh air. However, other people are still affected by it as they cross paths with someone who is smoking.

The worst part is when people smoke in enclosed areas so that the people in there with them have no choice but to also breathe in the chemicals.

So it is important, and courteous, for people to smoke outside in areas where they are able to cause less harm to less people.

There is a reason people do not want to smoke, and it is normally because they do not want to deal with the smell and chemicals that go with it.

Often times we see people smoking in their cars and in the back seat are children who do not have a choice but to take it in.

Children who would have no idea to say anything to their parent or older sibling to quit smoking because they may not know much about it. Or even if they do know how harmful it is, they do not want to say anything for fear of getting in trouble.

But every time that child gets in the car, they have to deal with the smell and chemicals in the air whether the cigarette burns or not.

Children are also more susceptible to getting symptoms other than just cancer or heart disease. They can get asthma attacks, ear infections, pneumonia and bronchitis.

Opening the windows and having air fresheners may alleviate some of the smell but the carcinogens will still be there.

What is worse is that some people choose to smoke in their homes also. That means that the child will always be in the presence of it.

The smell will be in their items so when they leave the house, they will still smell it, when they get in the car, it will be around them and when they lie in bed to sleep each night their lungs will be filling up with tar, ammonia, carbon monoxide and so much more.

If you have decided to smoke, then you have to live with those choices but that does not mean that others should also have to suffer and risk their health and well-being because of it.

Shirmeen Ahmad is junior political science and journalism  major. She can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].