" I spent years telling people how great it felt to be drug-free before I realized that I couldn't last twelve hours without a cigarette." (A former smokers)
Most people are aware of the danger of addictive characteristics in heroin, alcohol or other drugs while they consider smoking as a bad habit only. Nicotine contained in tobacco is a stimulant, like cocaine or amphetamines. The scope of the problem is staggering : heroin may kill hundreds of people a year, but tobacco-related illnesses kill more than that every week.
But does nicotine addiction qualify as an addictive disease?
Can it be classified alongside drug addiction?
Let's see if it meets the criteria :
- Compulsion.
Smokers who've made an attempt to quit and have relapsed may experience this compulsion in such a powerful way that they find themselves consuming many more cigarettes than before. - Continued use.
Most smokers begin in their late teens and continue to smoke at least ten years before they quit. - Medical problems.
The negative aspects of smoking to the body such as shortness of breath, coughing, lung diseases or several kinds of cancers become more apparent as smokers age.
