The appeal of smoking and its "rebellious" image dates back to the early 1900s when black and white films and images portrayed cigarettes in a sexy light (some may say). Just seeing an old movie star laid across a leather couch with a cigarette dangling between two careless fingers was a symbol of careless sensuality and a "cool attitude."
Who were some of the pioneers of these iconic smoke-filled reputations? Consider icons like James Dean, Marilyn Monroe and my favorite - Twilight Zone host and American writer Rod Serling (who, according to the internet, smoked 3-4 packs of cigarettes a day).
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| Chew, Not Smoke? Nope! |
Totally unrelated, but related, my childhood consisted of school days where the "bad kids" cut class and went somewhere like the schoolyard or staircases to smoke. When I went to Bildersee Junior High School in Canarsie, a group of the "cool girls" wreaked of cigarette smoke, but it was considered a type of rebellious perfume to attract an attract a "cute bad boy" who probably also smoked and had the same educational values.
Let's get real, very few of the students who were on the honor role or in the chess/math clubs picked up a pack of smokes or went to the bathroom to puff away when the morning bell went off! I wasn't in ANY club or social group and I wasn't liked by the "cool kids", rather I was just boring old Dara who was afraid to fill her little lungs with carcinogens and have her hair/clothes smell like a pipe shop.
Wow - I supposed nothing says: "I look cool because I don't care about my health - and not caring about my health is a great value!" like picking up or continuing a habit that has most likely proven to kill more people than car accidents or homicides in a single city*.
The Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC) reports that over 480,000 annual deaths have occurred from smoking and smoking-related diseases, including secondhand smoke. Lung cancer, heart disease, respiratory conditions...Yes! All of those kids in school have the right idea to look like they're careless while getting a nicotine buzz that helped them numb the pain of growing up. Boo-hoo!
In order to understand the hype behind e-cigarettes and the increasing number of deaths behind vaping (inhaling vaporized or aerated cannabis), most would have to accept the fact that every generation will have a dangerous vice. While I never used drugs or had any interest in substances or substance abuse, I grew up in the 1980s - which was still part of an era when you could smoke in public parks, beaches, restaurants, clubs, and inside of airplanes.
Our city cracked down on the cigs, banning smoking in most public areas in 2011. Was that going to have a domino effect on our residents and force them to quit smoking since every place they turned forbid them from lighting up? Oh yes, wouldn't it be easier if you JUST DIDN'T SMOKE AT ALL??? Of course!!
Today's generation of individuals - trying to get away with fitting in, getting a buzz/high and trying to be cool because they don't care about their health - is going a step further than my generation did. E-cigarette users and those who love to vape are dying faster today than the stars of the 1950s and 1960s who smoked regular cigarettes for over 3 decades!
Forget chain smoking and passing a joint around that party just to get a "hit". Today's availability of e-cigarettes and vaping products has upped the game and increased the chances of death much sooner than the smokes of the olden days.
Often laced with toxic cannabinoid additives, THC drugs and chemicals, vaping is becoming just as dangerous as smoking regular cigarettes as it claims the lives of hundreds across the country. In 2019, as of September, 7 people reportedly died of vaping. Severe lung disease was the alleged culprit - although I'm still unsure why anyone would believe the slightest bit of of smoke trapped in their lungs would be a healthy choice!
Taking these devices off the shelves, banning their use in certain locations or raising the purchasing price/age consumption will not discourage hundreds - perhaps thousands - from getting their hands on these lethal substances. In my humble opinion, businesses are making too much money from those who need a buzz or love to escape reality while risking their lives to care about human mortality.
My favorite "smokes" were the candy/gum cigarettes sold in mini marts back the day. You pulled out a small pipe-like stick wrapped in white paper from the funky box and when you blew air into one end, powdered sugar billowed briefly around your face from the other end, simulating that "cool" image. Ah! But then you took that wrapper off and enjoyed a good old fashioned piece of gum! Yum!
Sadly, these goodies were removed from stores for "influencing youngsters" to eventually indulge in the real thing. The Family Smoking Prevention and Control Act was signed into law in June 2009, when candy/gum cigarettes were subsequently banned.
What's the answer?
A recent Vice.com article entitled "Seven People Have Died From Lung Illness Linked to Vaping: Should You Quit?" MeiLan Han professor of internal medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Michigan Medicine and director of the Michigan Airways Program said it best: "The bottom line is that the lungs were not designed to breathe anything other than clean air."
Any questions???
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