Tobacco use has a negative impact on personal finances in many ways. Such as –
- First, tobacco use is expensive. The cost of cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products can add up quickly.
- Second, tobacco use can lead to missed work days and lower productivity at work, which can lead to lost income.
- Third, tobacco use can increase the costs of health care, including doctor visits, prescriptions, and hospital stays.
- Fourth, insurance companies often charge higher premiums for smokers than nonsmokers.
- Finally, tobacco use can damage personal property, such as clothing and furniture.
Tobacco use is expensive. The average smoker spends about $2,000 a year on cigarettes. That’s money that could be used to pay bills, save for retirement, or buy a new car.
Smokers also tend to earn less than nonsmokers. Studies have shown that smokers earn about 3% less than nonsmokers. That may not seem like much, but over a lifetime, it can add up to tens of thousands of dollars in lost earnings.
Smoking also takes a toll on your health, which can lead to high medical bills. Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. It’s responsible for more than 480,000 deaths each year.
Smoking-related illnesses include heart disease, stroke, and cancer.
What are the Financial Effects of Tobacco?
Tobacco use is a leading cause of death and disease globally, causing more than 7 million deaths each year. Some other effects are –
1. The financial burden of tobacco is also significant, with economic costs estimated at 1.4% of global GDP – or US$1.16 trillion – in 2010.
2. The majority of the economic cost of tobacco is borne by society in the form of healthcare expenditure and lost productivity, rather than by the tobacco industry or individual smokers. In low- and middle-income countries, however, a large proportion of the cost is shouldered by households.
3. Healthcare expenditure related to tobacco use amounted to an estimated US$422 billion in 2010 with around three-quarters of this happening in low- and middle-income countries.
4. A large proportion of these costs are due to treating noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as cancer, heart disease, and stroke – all of which are linked to smoking.
5. Lost productivity as a result of premature death and illness caused by tobacco use amounted to an estimated US$506 billion in 2010.
6. This includes costs associated with absenteeism from work as well as lost productivity due to disability.
7. Once again, most of these costs are borne by society rather than the individuals themselves or the tobacco industry. In addition to direct healthcare costs and productivity losses, there are also indirect costs associated with environmental damage and fires caused by smoking materials.
8. These totaled an estimated US$156 billion in 2010.9 Tobacco use imposes significant financial burdens on households as well as on society as a whole.
Does Smoking Affect Income?
It is no secret that smoking cigarettes can be expensive. In addition to the cost of buying cigarettes, smokers also incur higher healthcare costs and often earn less money than non-smokers. Does smoking really affect income?
The answer is yes – smoking does affect income. Studies have shown that smokers earn less money than non-smokers, even when controlling for other factors such as education and experience. One study found that smokers earned an average of 3% less than non-smokers.
This may not sound like much, but over a lifetime, it can add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost earnings. Smokers are also more likely to be unemployed than non-smokers. This is likely due to the fact that employers are hesitant to hire smokers because of the higher healthcare costs associated with smoking.
In addition, smokers are more likely to take sick days and miss work due to their habit. So if you’re looking to maximize your earnings potential, quitting smoking is a good place to start. Not only will you save money on cigarettes, but you’ll also likely see a boost in your income once you kick the habit for good!
Why Do You Think Tobacco Use Contributes to Poverty?
There are many reasons why tobacco use contributes to poverty. For one, tobacco use is expensive. According to the World Health Organization, a pack of cigarettes costs an average of $6.28 in high-income countries and $0.97 in low- and middle-income countries.
This means that people who smoke spend a significant amount of their income on cigarettes. In addition, tobacco use is harmful to health and can lead to chronic diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and stroke. These diseases are expensive to treat and can prevent people from working and earning an income.
Finally, tobacco companies often target poor communities with their marketing campaigns. This makes it more likely for people in these communities to start smoking and become addicted to nicotine. Once addicted, it becomes even harder for them to break free from the cycle of poverty.
What is a Negative Social Consequence of Using Tobacco?
There are many negative social consequences of using tobacco. Such as –
- One is that it can be very difficult to quit once you start smoking. This can lead to problems with family, friends, and work.
- Smoking can also make it hard to breathe, which can limit your ability to do activities you enjoy.
- Additionally, tobacco use is a leading cause of cancer.
- Summarize the Negative Impacts That Tobacco Use Can Have on Families.
- Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. Each year, tobacco use kills more than 480,000 Americans.
- Tobacco use harms nearly every organ of the body and causes many diseases.
- Smoking cigarettes causes about one-third of all cancer deaths in the US.
- Cigarette smoking is linked to cancers of the lung, throat, mouth, pancreas, bladder, kidney, and cervix.
- It also increases the risk of leukemia (cancer of the blood cells).
- Cigarette smoking is responsible for most cases of chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
- Smoking cigars or using smokeless tobacco also can cause these diseases.
Smoking during pregnancy can cause-
- low birth weight,
- preterm delivery,
- placental abruption (when the placenta pulls away from the wall of the uterus before delivery),
- stillbirth, and
- sudden infant death syndrome
- Smoking by parents can result in respiratory problems and middle ear disease in their children.
- Secondhand smoke exposure contributes to approximately 41,000 deaths among nonsmokers each year, including 165 deaths from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) .
- In addition to its effects on health, tobacco use takes a huge toll on families financially.
- In 2012, healthcare costs directly caused by smoking totaled more than $156 billion. These costs included:
- $131 billion for premature death and lost productivity;
- $5 billion for medical care for adults;
- $20 million for hospitalizations due to low birth weight infants.
While tobacco use has declined overall in recent years, some groups continue to be disproportionately affected by the tobacco-related disease:
- Men-Those with lower incomes; American Indians/Alaska Native ;
- People with mental illness ;
- Lesbian, gay or bisexual individuals ;
- And those who identify as transgender.
Conclusion
Tobacco use has a negative impact on personal finances in several ways.
- First, it is expensive to purchase tobacco products.
- Second, tobacco use can lead to health problems that require medical treatment, which can be costly.
- Third, tobacco use can impair one’s ability to work and earn an income.
- Finally, insurance rates may be higher for smokers than for nonsmokers.
