What Is Tobacco Biography
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the fresh leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as an organic pesticide, and in the form of nicotine tartrate it is used in some medicines. In consumption it most commonly appears in the forms of smoking, chewing, snuffing, or dipping tobacco, or snus. There are many species of tobacco, which are all encompassed by the plant genus Nicotiana.
Tobacco is a plant that comes in two varieties, nicotiana tabacum and nicotiana rustica. The latter is the most cultivated of the two and the source of all the tobacco produced in the U.S. The raw leaves are dried and shredded and then rolled into cigarettes or cigars, or packaged as pipe or chewing tobacco or as snuff. Tobacco is the only organic source of nicotine, which is its addicting agent. In addition to nicotine, tobacco smoke contains some 4,000 different gases and particles, including "tar," a conglomeration of many chemicals, which is especially harmful to the lungs. Among the harmful gases in tobacco smoke are nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, and cyanide. More than 40 carcinogens—chemicals capable of causing cancer— have been identified in tobacco smoke, and one of these, benzo(a)pyrene, is being studied as a possible direct link to cancer. Many substances are added to cigarettes by manufacturers to enhance the flavor or to make smoking more pleasant. Some of the compounds found in tobacco smoke include ammonia, tar, and carbon monoxide. Exactly what effects these substances have on the cigarette smoker’s health is unknown, but there is no evidence that lowering the tar content of a cigarette lowers the health risk.
The great majority of tobacco users smoke cigarettes, inhaling the nicotine-laden smoke into their lungs. A smaller percentage of users smoke cigars and pipes, and generally do not inhale, since cigar and pipe tobacco is potent enough for the nicotine in the smoke they produce to be readily absorbed in the mouth.
The smallest group uses "smokeless tobacco," in the form of snuff or the peculiarly American product, chewing tobacco. Traditionally, a "pinch" of snuff, a pulverized tobacco preparation, was inhaled through the nostrils. Now, however, it is mostly placed in the mouth ("dipped"), where the nicotine it contains is slowly and directly absorbed. Chewing tobacco is taken in similar fashion.
About 70% of smokers say they want to quit and about half try to quit each year, but only 4% to 7% succeed without help. This is because smokers not only become physically dependent on nicotine; there is a strong emotional (psychological) dependence. This is what leads to relapse after quitting. The smoker may link smoking with social and many other activities. Smokers also may use cigarettes to help manage unpleasant feelings and emotions, which can become a problem for some smokers when they try to quit. All of these factors make smoking a hard habit to break.
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the fresh leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as an organic pesticide, and in the form of nicotine tartrate it is used in some medicines. In consumption it most commonly appears in the forms of smoking, chewing, snuffing, or dipping tobacco, or snus. There are many species of tobacco, which are all encompassed by the plant genus Nicotiana.
Tobacco is a plant that comes in two varieties, nicotiana tabacum and nicotiana rustica. The latter is the most cultivated of the two and the source of all the tobacco produced in the U.S. The raw leaves are dried and shredded and then rolled into cigarettes or cigars, or packaged as pipe or chewing tobacco or as snuff. Tobacco is the only organic source of nicotine, which is its addicting agent. In addition to nicotine, tobacco smoke contains some 4,000 different gases and particles, including "tar," a conglomeration of many chemicals, which is especially harmful to the lungs. Among the harmful gases in tobacco smoke are nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, and cyanide. More than 40 carcinogens—chemicals capable of causing cancer— have been identified in tobacco smoke, and one of these, benzo(a)pyrene, is being studied as a possible direct link to cancer. Many substances are added to cigarettes by manufacturers to enhance the flavor or to make smoking more pleasant. Some of the compounds found in tobacco smoke include ammonia, tar, and carbon monoxide. Exactly what effects these substances have on the cigarette smoker’s health is unknown, but there is no evidence that lowering the tar content of a cigarette lowers the health risk.
The great majority of tobacco users smoke cigarettes, inhaling the nicotine-laden smoke into their lungs. A smaller percentage of users smoke cigars and pipes, and generally do not inhale, since cigar and pipe tobacco is potent enough for the nicotine in the smoke they produce to be readily absorbed in the mouth.
The smallest group uses "smokeless tobacco," in the form of snuff or the peculiarly American product, chewing tobacco. Traditionally, a "pinch" of snuff, a pulverized tobacco preparation, was inhaled through the nostrils. Now, however, it is mostly placed in the mouth ("dipped"), where the nicotine it contains is slowly and directly absorbed. Chewing tobacco is taken in similar fashion.
About 70% of smokers say they want to quit and about half try to quit each year, but only 4% to 7% succeed without help. This is because smokers not only become physically dependent on nicotine; there is a strong emotional (psychological) dependence. This is what leads to relapse after quitting. The smoker may link smoking with social and many other activities. Smokers also may use cigarettes to help manage unpleasant feelings and emotions, which can become a problem for some smokers when they try to quit. All of these factors make smoking a hard habit to break.
What Is Tobacco
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