HYDERABAD: Ten billion cigarettes are disposed of every day. The World Health Organisation has recently released data that shows that tobacco smoke emissions contribute thousands of tonnes of human carcinogens, toxicants and greenhouse gases. Tobacco is one of the leading causes of cancer in the world with tobacco smoke known to contain at least 70 chemicals that are carcinogens, that is, capable of causing cancer.
Even after it is smoked, a cigarette continues to be harmful. According to WHO data, around 40 per cent of items collected in urban and coastal clean-ups are cigarette butts. Cigarette butts are generally non-biodegradable and the water that leaches out from them is toxic for the environment. Prof. Purushotham Reddy, an environmentalist, says, “Tobacco is a killer crop for the body and the environment. Cigarette butts that find their way into water bodies affect marine animals and the aquatic ecosystem. Tobacco is also grown in prime agricultural areas which can then not be used for cultivation of food in the future.”
Many animals are also found to be sick when they ingest tobacco remnants. P. Vijay Anand Reddy, the director of Apollo Cancer Institute, says, “Over 44 per cent of the country’s cancers are caused by smoking. The maximum number of genetic mutations are present in a smoker’s body. The body’s protective function tries to repair and protect the DNA from carcinogens, however, when the same process happens repeatedly, the carcinogens win, leading to mutation of DNA.” Mutations reduce chances of survival and the lifespan of individuals. Nicotine, which is popularly prescribed as an alternative to tobacco, has been found to have carcinogenic properties itself.
