Tobacco facts and statistics indicate that smoking is responsible for over two million deaths annually in the United States. Many of these deaths are the result of premature deaths attributed to tobacco use. Smokers are also more susceptible to chronic illnesses than non-smokers; one of them being respiratory disease, coronary disease, and various types of cancer. Although the number of people that smoke has decreased over the years and there is a ban on advertising especially geared towards young people, studies show that most people start smoking prior to the age of 18. Tobacco has many elements that are known to be harmful to a person’s health, and a large proportion of these substances are known to cause cancer. Due to these poisonous substances and the way it affects a smoker’s skin many smokers appear much older than their true age.
Other tobacco facts and statistics indicate that thousands of chemicals enter your body from smoking a single cigarette. Those chemicals include acetone, ammonia, carbon dioxide, lead, nicotine, formaldehyde, shellac, and hydrogen cyanide. People who smoke have a fifty higher chance of dying prematurely and their life expectancy is 12 years shorter than a non-smoker. Tobacco facts and statistics also show that people in all different age groups die annually from secondhand smoke, and this is especially true for older adults. Young children are also affected by secondhand smoke with proportionally higher rates of chest related illnesses than children in households with non-smokers.

And smoking is not the only danger. About 9.3% of high school students use smokeless tobacco. Kids who chew tobacco are approximately five times as likely to develop oral cancer than those who do not chew tobacco. The risks are real and problems are can develop quickly because cancer can appear within five years of chewing tobacco regularly. A harrowing story about an all-American 18-year-old reveals the very real dangers of chewing tobacco. Sean Marsee was a talented athlete who won 28 medals. He did not smoke or drink, but chewed tobacco, believing it wasn not bad for him. When he was diagnosed with oral cancer, part of his tongue was removed. But the cancer had spread. More 

