The Truth About Smoking

Does the Bible condemn smoking or any use of tobacco products? Since God does not specifically command, “Thou shall not smoke or chew tobacco,” many conclude that it is not a sin. Yet research has proven that it is harmful to one’s health. What does the Bible say about this?

In recent years, controversy has raged over the negative effects of tobacco use, especially cigarette smoking. Most are familiar with a court ruling some years ago that resulted in big tobacco companies having to pay billions of dollars in damages. This money went into a fund benefitting smokers who have been diagnosed with lung cancer. Further lawsuits followed.

This would have been a fair and just ruling, if the risks associated with cigarette smoking had not been public knowledge for decades. The plaintiffs knew they were subjecting their bodies to something harmful and potentially fatal. However, only when offered the opportunity to capitalize on the results of their irresponsible actions were they motivated to even appear to take a stand.

The problem is not only the blatant hypocrisy of the plaintiffs, but also the tobacco industry’s avoidance of harsh realities. These very profitable companies maintain a “smoke screen” of politically correct, user-friendly ad campaigns supporting this or that noble cause, as if to say, “Hey, we’re not the bad guys. Look what we’re contributing to disaster relief efforts, environmental protection, and disease research.”

Tobacco companies naturally want to draw attention away from the plain facts about cigarette smoking. And, since the whole point is to polish their image, the accuracy and sincerity of such ad campaigns is questionable. If their image is shiny enough, tobacco companies know that most people will not look beyond it and examine the facts.

Here are a few:

• “Industry scientific reports exposed through litigation show that as early as 1953, the cigarette industry’s researchers were of the opinion that ‘studies of clinical data tend to confirm the relationship between heavy and prolonged tobacco smoking and incidence of cancer of the lung’” (It’s Legal But It Ain’t Right: Harmful Social Consequences of Legal Industries).

• “Scientists have discovered that ammonia lets you absorb more nicotine—keeping you hooked on smoking” (Breast Cancer: Cause—Prevention—Cure).

• “Additives are used to make cigarettes that provide high levels of ‘free’ nicotine which increases the addictive ‘kick’ of the nicotine. Ammonium compounds can fulfil this role by raising the alkalinity of smoke” (“Tobacco Additives / Cigarette Engineering and Nicotine Addiction”).

• “Additives are used to enhance the taste of tobacco smoke, to make the product more desirable to consumers. Although seemingly innocuous the addition of flavourings making the cigarette ‘attractive’ and ‘palatable’ is in itself cause for concern” (ibid.).

• “In addition to tobacco, which contains nicotine…599 ingredients have been identified in tobacco industry documents as being added to tobacco in the manufacturing of cigarettes by the five major American cigarette manufacturing companies. While some of these chemicals, such as sugars, vanilla extract, prune juice, and vinegar, are generally recognized as safe when used in food products, all produce numerous additional chemical compounds when burned. None, probably, is more deadly than nicotine, however” (quitsmokingsupport.com).

• “Though 600 additives are authorised for use in tobacco products, only the tobacco manufacturers can say which additives are used and in which brands. Not even the Government…responsible for the regulation of tobacco products [has] this information or the power to demand it” (www.ash.org.uk).

Most people are not interested in getting the facts about an issue, especially when doing so leaves them with a clear choice between right and wrong. Proverbs 21:2 states, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD ponders the hearts.”

The world views smoking as socially acceptable—cool—fashionable. This is an especially enticing trap for young people, who are constantly faced with peer pressure and the need to be part of the “in” crowd.

Research has proven that teens become more quickly addicted to cigarettes (within a few days of their first cigarette) than do adults. It also takes teens the same amount of time to experience withdrawal symptoms when trying to quit (usually within hours of their last cigarette).

Why Do People Smoke?

Many do not stop to examine why they do what they do. Most form habits early in life and do nothing to change them. Eventually, these habits seem as natural as breathing, sleeping and eating.

Children pick up habits—good and bad—from their parents. This is why Solomon was inspired to write, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6).

In 1992, the Journal of the American Medical Association reported that “75% of all teenagers who smoke have parents who smoke.” All too often, parents adopt the child-rearing philosophy of, “Do as I say, not as I do.” They may try to impress upon their children the serious adverse effects of certain behaviours, yet display those behaviours themselves. They may say, “Now kids, don’t smoke because it will kill you,” while supporting a carton-a-week habit. This sends a confusing message to children, one they may translate into license to do whatever feels good or gains them peer acceptance.

Statistics from the World Health Organization show that each day between 80,000 and 100,000 children smoke for the first time. Approximately 50 percent of them will regularly smoke from that point forward. That translates into up to 18.25 million new habitual smokers each year. Many of these kids look no further than their peers when making decisions between right and wrong.

God’s Word shows the error of this approach. I Kings 12:1-15 records an example from the history of ancient Israel. It shows the disastrous results of a young leader who followed bad advice from his peers instead of wise counsel from his elders. The book of Proverbs has much instruction about heeding the advice of those older and wiser than ourselves, especially our parents (Prov 1:8; 3:1-2; 4:1,20; 6:20; 16:31).

The media plays an enormous role in making cigarette smoking attractive and appealing to kids. It glamorizes smoking on television and in movies. Advertising generally targets young audiences, sometimes in very subtle ways. Consider the following sarcastic quote: “The August 2001 issue of Rolling Stone magazine has a 2-page cigarette ad right smack in the middle. But that’s okay, because [on] the cover of that issue there’s just a picture of [a popular music performer]…We’re sure no one under 18’s ever heard of him or his band—they appeal to a much older audience. So a cigarette ad in that magazine will probably never be seen by any young girls or anything. Just like the tobacco companies agreed” (thetruth.com).

Tobacco companies use various tactics in their ad campaigns. Certain magazine ads and billboards display images of “macho men” to appeal to vanity. One popular brand even subtly promotes bestiality! Some brands specifically target women, taking subtle shots at traditional values and God-ordained roles. Many advertisements emphasize youthful vitality, sex appeal and freedom from restraints, seeking to attract young people facing these issues.

On the surface, all of this may seem glamorous and exciting. But Christ said, in John 7:24, “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” Behind all the glitz, glamour, and machismo masking the cigarette industry are ugly, frightening facts.

For instance:

• “In the USA several tobacco companies have publicly admitted that smoking is addictive. In 1997 the smallest of the big five US tobacco companies (the Liggett Group) admitted that it had raised the nicotine content in cigarettes to increase their addictiveness” (Health Psychology: Theory, Research and Practice).

• “Many smokers choose ‘low-tar,’ ‘mild,’ ‘light,’ or ‘ultra-light’ cigarettes because they think that these cigarettes may be less harmful to their health than ‘regular’ or ‘full-flavour’ cigarettes. Although smoke from light cigarettes may feel smoother and lighter on the throat and chest, light cigarettes are not healthier than regular cigarettes. The truth is that light cigarettes do not reduce the health risks of smoking. The only way to reduce a smoker’s risk, and the risk to others, is to stop smoking completely” (National Cancer Institute, “The Truth About ‘Light’ Cigarettes: Questions and Answers”).

• “According to a…report issued by the Office of the Surgeon General, 400,000 adults die every year from smoking-related illnesses, making smoking the number one cause of preventable disease and death in the nation” (www.sciencefriday.com).

Even after examining the facts, some might still argue, “It’s my body. If I want to smoke, it’s my business. Besides, it’s not hurting anybody else.” This shallow reasoning has been used to validate all kinds of wrong behaviour and actions: pre-marital and extra-marital sex, alcoholism, drug abuse, prostitution, abortion, etc. Proverbs 14:12 states, “There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”

When approached with the moral implications of smoking, some will even argue, “The Bible does not say, ‘Thou shall not smoke.’”

That may be true, but…

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