Cigarette butts affect environment severely
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 cleanups 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.
Nicotine is a key component in electronic cigarettes which are prescribed to beat tobacco addiction.
Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi, professor and cancer surgeon at Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai, says, “There in one milligram of nicotine in one gram of tobacco and yet that causes the addiction to smoking. Nicotine is a poisonous chemical, even in its purest form, which is why it is on the list of poisons in many countries. There is a need to regulate its sale because it can harm the eye, heart and the kidney as it travels all over the body.”
Doctors claim that the number of filters in a cigarette can help reduce the extent of damage caused by tobacco.
“Most Indian cigarettes are single filtered and that is bad because the more the number of filters, the more one can save oneself from the tobacco. But that does not mean that filtered cigarettes are good. They only reduce the impact negligibly. Smokers who live long can’t be considered examples, for it is mere chance in their case,” says Dr Vijay Anand.