Making Washington a Healthier Place to Live

Cigarette smoking is no longer being viewed as a glamorous act, such as it has been in previous generations. Several programs have been enacted since the days of cigarette advertizing when characters like Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man could be seen on billboards nationwide. Such advertizing has since been banned, especially in part of the targeting effects it had on youths, urging them to smoke.

Smoking at one time was much more common place than it is now that measures are being put in place to promote smoking cessation and abstinence. After advertizing was banned in the 1990’s, other efforts were taken to clean up the air everywhere. Smoking has been banned in many places of business or gathering where it used to be common place. States would begin to pass smoking bans in bars and in places of business. Taxes were greatly increased on the costs of a pack of cigarettes.

However, despite all of these measures that have been put in place, there is still too big a number of Washington State youths who are active smokers, and a great number of kids start smoking every day. At odds with all of the legislation and programs available now that are geared towards eliminating smoking at least to the point wherein no new people start smoking, the statistics show that at least 770,000 citizens still smoke.

The number of people who smoke has dropped by 30% in Washington State within the past 10 year period. However, the alarmingly large number of people who smoke coupled with the alarmingly stable increase in the numbers of first time smokers who start smoking every day. Youth smoking statistics have been cut by half since the advertizing powers driving the tobacco industry have been limited. The majority of people who start smoking do so when they are still in childhood, and more than 1/3 of those who start smoking will eventually die from it or suffer from other smoking related complications.

In order to combat the scourge of youth smoking, the Washington State Department of Health has compiled a list of the programs that have been enacted to promote smoking cessation and prevention. These programs can be found through various links that are provided by the official state government website of Washington. These links describe the many safeguards that are being put in place to ensure that the youth of Washington State are safe from the predatory vice of addictive tobacco use.

Quitting tobacco, call the Washington Tobacco Quit Line at 1-800-QUIT-NOW or visit QuitLine.com
Protecting yourself from toxic secondhand smoke, visit SmokeFreeWashington.com
Washington State Department of Health. Visit: doh.wa.gov

Some of the measures being taken to protect the youth of Washington State include legislation that makes it illegal for anyone to sell or provide cigarettes to anyone who is under the age of 18. Such laws are backed up by random sting operations on businesses where tobacco products are sold. Those operations are intended to let everyone know that the sale of tobacco to children will not be tolerated, and further they provide a caution that businesses that sell tobacco to kids will be caught eventually and charged heavy fines as well as lose their license to sell such products.

There are several other campaigns that are current and actively working towards preventing tobacco use in both kids and adults. These campaigns are designed to inform the public of the intentions behind the tobacco industry’s advertizing ploys, as well as the true information about what smoking cigarettes will eventually do to your health over time. Gone are the days when smoking was something that could have been recommended by doctors, and gone are the days of carefree and easy access to very deadly products that the tobacco companies provide.

Now a great many laws that have been put in place that make smoking more of an inconvenience. These laws provide for heavy taxing of tobacco products, smoking bans inside businesses where smoking was once common, and legislation banning the sale to individuals who have not reached a certain age of consent. Governments are very serious about putting an end to the dangerous practice of smoking cigarettes and other similar products. With this in mind, what kind of solutions are available for those who have already been established as smokers, and who may not want to quit smoking or stand in the rain every time they want a cigarette?

Welcome to advent of the electronic cigarette. Electronic cigarettes are devices that look like a cigarette, in which you place nicotine capsules that are then vaporized when a person draws on the cigarette. These products provide nicotine without any of the other dangerous chemical substances found in tobacco products. They can be recharged and reused, and they are a cost effective way to ingest nicotine without greatly endangering your health. Electronic cigarettes are available everywhere. They can be used indoors, have no smell, and can be flavored.

Consumer Reports