Quit Smoking

Hitting the road can mean a hit to your health if you smoke

by JT Epting

In a society increasingly sensitive to health hazards and dangerous driving, the issues of smoking and driving were bound to meet in a most unholy union. Many feel driving conjures up challenges on its own, and can only be complicated by smoking.

A health hazard

A single person may have the right to smoke, but that does not constitute endangering the health of others present. In a vehicle, smokers should remember that not everyone enjoys breathing in smoke that has repeatedly been shown to contain toxins. Most scientists consider secondhand smoke to be more toxic than actually smoking.

The confined space of a car is ideal for retaining toxins for repeated inhalation. Some studies have shown that smoking increases a normal person's mortality rate by three. Although smokers have the right to choose to smoke, they must also consider the health of others be it friends, family, or co-workers, especially when in the confined space of an automobile.

A safety hazard

All of the factors mentioned before may be associated with any small or confined area. The utmost problem with smoking in a car pertains to driving. At present day, cars are outfitted with stereos and compact disc players, not to mention the rise of cell phone use while driving. These items alone pose hazardous distractions for drivers.

Many states are beginning to ban the use of cell phones while driving. Why should smoking be any different? First a cigarette must be removed, then the lighter must be retrieved, and finally the cigarette must be lit. All of this occurring while driving sixty miles an hour is unsettling.

A dropped cigarette may burn a driver's leg, causing him to swerve. Combine the risks of smoking and driving with all the other modern-day distractions and it could result in disaster.

In the hopes of creating a safer driving experience, cigarettes must not be thrown out of the equation. Driving while distracted is almost as dangerous as driving drunk, and cigarettes only complicate the matter.

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