Nicotiana tabacum
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The tobacco plant has a long history in the Americas which archeological evidence suggests was used from the Mayan empire in Central America up to the peoples of the Mississippi Valley. Its was mostly used by smoking the dried leaves for medicinal purposes and reportedly was used to cure illnesses such as asthma, fevers, and even depression. After European contact, sailors and merchants allowed the plant to be distributed throughout the globe.
Today tobacco is a cash crop that is widely used, being consumed most by countries like the U.S., China, the Former Soviet States, India, and Brazil. With this, it has also been found as a leading cause of death: killing about 8 million people per year and approximately half its users. Despite common presumptions, the tobacco alternative of vaping isn’t exactly a safer activity either. The nicotine “juice” is actually made from a manufactured extract deriving from tobacco plants. While vaping may not come with the many “additives” that come with smoking, the ingredients for vape liquid are just as harmful. Years of research has shown the damaging effects of prolonged nicotine use- showing an acceleration of tumar growth and decreased cancer immunity, primarily in the lung and breast tissues. Even with all these damaging long-term effects, only a small portion of users permanently quit.
Personally I enjoy tobacco in its various forms, perfering the light blue American Spirit cigarettes. The company is based in North Carolina with most of its raw tobacco being grown within the state. Tobacco also plays a large part in the social cultures I participate in, so quitting becomes a more difficult task. What I find most interesting about this plant is how in its native environment it was used for good, while today it remains as a plague infecting many people across the world.
Works Cited
Mishra, Shanu, and MB Mishra. “Tobacco: Its Historical, Cultural, Oral, and Periodontal Health Association.” Journal of International Society of Preventive and Community Dentistry 3, no. 1 (2013): 12. https://doi.org/10.4103/2231-0762.115708.
Randall, Vernellia. “The History of Tobacco.” UDayton, January 31, 1998. https://academic.udayton.edu/health/syllabi/tobacco/history.htm.
“Tobacco.” World Health Organization. World Health Organization. Accessed January 28, 2022. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tobacco.
Tyagi, Abhishek, Sambad Sharma, Kerui Wu, Shih-Ying Wu, Fei Xing, Yin Liu, Dan Zhao, Ravindra Pramod Deshpande, Ralph B. D’Agostino, and Kounosuke Watabe. “Nicotine Promotes Breast Cancer Metastasis by Stimulating N2 Neutrophils and Generating Pre-Metastatic Niche in Lung.” Nature Communications 12, no. 1 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-20733-9.
Ecological Empire 
