Going Green Tip of the Day: Quit Smoking

No, I do not smoke.

If you do, you should stop. Right now. Don't wait another minute. Stop. This is actually a health tip as well as a Going Green tip. If you or someone you love smokes, please quit or help them today. Smoking is not only damaging both your and your family's health, it's also harming others around you as well as the environment.

I decided this would be my tip today when I saw the pile of cigarette butts outside my first floor neighbor's apartment. According to cigarettelitter.org (yep, a real website), 7 TRILLION (what?!) cigarette butts are tossed on the ground each year (world wide). And it's no surprise that they are the most littered item in the world. So not only are they filling our landfills, they are also piling up on our streets, beaches, parking lots and apparently door steps (my neighbor's at least). And in case you were wondering...no, they are not biodegradable. There may be an eco-friendly cigarette out there somewhere, but the environment isn't the only thing I'm worried about:

As the second major cause of death in the world, smoking is not doing you any favors. In fact, it's not doing anyone any favors. Secondhand smoke is KNOWN to cause lung cancer. So while it may seem like I'm on my soapbox here, I'm just worried about smokers and those they care about it (and the strangers breathing their exhaled smoke!).

Quit today. Save yourself, your family and the environment. For more information on how to quit visit: www.quitnet.com (the web's original and largest quit smoking site).