Implications of a nicotine-free society

Cigarette smoking causes more premature deaths than do all of the following together: AIDS, cocaine, heroin, alcohol, fire, automobile accidents, homicide, and suicide. A society freed of its addiction to nicotine would ultimately experience a life expectancy gain comparable to that that would be achieved by the elimination of all cancers not caused by tobacco use. In particular, each year, the 390,000 individuals who now succumb to tobacco-related deaths instead would realize a life expectancy gain of 15 years. The tobacco industry implies that the demise of tobacco consumption would wreak havoc with the economy. By contrast, some antitobacco activists suggest that the end of tobacco use would yield a multibillion dollar fiscal dividend. Each argument is fundamentally flawed. The economic impacts of a nicotine-free society would be modest and of far less consequence than the principal implication: a significantly enriched quality and quantity of life.