HELP
Read the following information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

•Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause
of death in the United States.

•Cigarette smoking causes more than 480,000 deaths
each year in the United States. This is nearly one
in five deaths.

•Smoking causes more deaths each year than the
following causes combined:

◦Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)

◦Illegal drug use

◦Alcohol use

◦Motor vehicle injuries

◦Firearm-related incidents

•More than 10 times as many U. S. citizens have died
prematurely from cigarette smoking than have died
in all the wars fought by the United States.

•Smoking causes about 90% (or 9 out of 10) of all lung
cancer deaths. More women die from lung cancer
each year than from breast cancer.

•Smoking causes about 80% (or 8 out of 10) of all
deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD).

•Cigarette smoking increases risk for death from all
causes in men and women.

•The risk of dying from cigarette smoking has
increased over the last 50 years in the U. S.

How does cigarette smoking relate to public health?

Cigarette smoking is a public health issue because it contributes to a high number of deaths each year.
Cigarette smoking is not a public health issue because people are able to legally smoke tobacco.
Cigarette smoking is not a public health issue because deaths related to cigarette smoking are preventable.
Cigarette smoking is a public health issue because smokers always die of related diseases like lung cancer.