- Published: November 17, 2021
- Updated: November 17, 2021
- University / College: The University of Queensland
- Level: Masters
- Language: English
- Downloads: 17
Banning Smoking in Public Areas s and local ities are advocating for the regulation of tobacco and other related drugs. Massachusetts for instance decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana because of its medicinal purposes. However, with tobacco, the trend is exactly opposite because new regulations are being enacted to control its use in public places. In fact some states are even considering banning smoking in bars and any other social places. This is what now leads us to definition of smoking bans. These are public policies that include criminal laws, health regulations and occupational safety that prohibit smoking tobacco in public places and workplaces. This is normally done in order to protect the public from involuntary smoking because public smoking often exposes them to the effects of second-hand smoking which includes increased risk of emphysema, cancer, heart diseases and other illnesses.
The regulation of smoking is important to the economy because public smoking presents a lot of dangers to the third parties. Individuals can still smoke at their own pleasure but not publicly because we also have children to protect. If children grow in an environment where smoking is the order of the day, then they are very likely to end up smoking because of the poor example shown to them by the adults. The United Sates government has always discouraged people from smoking through heavy taxation and limitless adverts that teach the public on the dangers of smoking. Several other countries like South Africa, Italy and New Zealand also practice the same and have restricted the areas where people can smoke. These bans apply mostly to enclosed areas like bars, shops, offices, restaurants, trains and theatres.
Banning smoking in public places has different effects on the economy as a whole but the net effect is positive. Scientists agree that smoking is dangerous to the health of the smoker and those around him. Smoking tobacco can cause strokes, cancer and other heart diseases. The problem is that these effects are not limited to the smokers because the people close to them also inhale this smoke involuntarily. These people are exposed to these dangers but they have no choice since they are just forced into it. This calls for the government to come in and protect them through legislations like banning smoking in public places. These bans also discourage people from smoking because they can only do so privately in certain selected areas. Through the reduction in smoking hours, their smoking rates are often reduced significantly.
Although some people will argue that smoking ban eats down on the business success of some organizations, it should be noted that the government spends a lot of money treating smoking related diseases annually. The resultant effect is that the government is better off reducing the smoking levels than allowing this type of businesses to prosper because their success only means one thing; additional medical expenditures by the government. Apart from the health aspects of public smoking, being forced to smoke involuntarily in public places is very annoying and irritating. It also has a bad effect to the children because they get exposed to the smoke at a very tender age which exposes them to the risk of turning into smoking at a young age. In order to protect the children and the general public from such effects, smoking ban from public places proves to be very helpful as it gives the smokers a chance to smoke their tobacco without interfering with the comfort of those around them. The states that still haven’t enacted restrictions on smoking should do so because it is important to regulate smoking in order to protect the non-smokers.
Works cited
” Cigarette Smoking Statistics.” American Heart Association. National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), 2008, National Center for Health Statistics. Web. 22 Feb. 2011.
” Do Smoking Bans Really Get People to Quit? – ABC News.” ABCNews. com: Breaking News, Politics, World News, Good Morning America, Exclusive Interviews – ABC News. Web. 15 Mar. 2011.
” FASTSTATS – Smoking.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Web. 15 Mar. 2011. .
” WHO | Tobacco.” Web. 15 Mar. 2011. .
” FASTSTATS – Smoking.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Web. 15 Mar. 2011.
” How Many People Die Because of Smoking Each Year?” Information Research Lab. Power through Knowledge. Web. 15 Mar. 2011.
” Smoking in Pubs & Clubs Limited to One Area from July 4 – NSW Department of Health.” NSW Department of Health – NSW Department of Health. Web. 15 Mar. 2011. .