I Quit Smoking Because a Judge Held Big Tobacco Responsible

They Did Teach Me, Growing Up.

By the time I was in high school, I was old enough to figure why Joe Camel was a bad thing to promote to children. I might help that I had excellent health and math teachers who coordinated with each other back then (Thank God). My then-age group is a demographic that was, and rightfully still is, heavily target by public health ad campaigns by groups like TheTruth.com. I remember anti-smoking ads were everywhere and were as familiar to me as the sound of my car starting as I drove to my high school just outside of Seattle..

I learned from my adolescent tobacco education less than 20 years ago (1) it's bad for you, (2) smoking makes people angrier over long periods, (3) you'll want more as you use more, and (4) smoking causes medical problems.

Back then, I walked two miles to cross-country practice at 6am almost every day, where I would then run seven more miles. Being able to finish that distance wasn't instant, and I had to push through some pain. But I got there. All changed half-way through college, when I picked up smoking.

The Courts Taught Me What Health Education Didn't: Cigarettes Were Designed to Trick Me

One day, during an "on" day in my "on again, off again" relationship with tobacco, I noticed the following label. As a consumer protection lawyer, I know getting a court to order a private company to issue a warning is a big deal. This warning provided a new piece of information I never knew:

That second bullet point changed my entire outlook on smoking. These companies intentionally designed cigarettes to change your brain chemistry to purchase their product. I previously thought the addictive nature and adverse health effects were naturally germane to tobacco. In my mind, that was just how the plant came out of the ground. However, the other court-ordered disclaimers found on Philip Morris' website make it clear:

Cigarette companies control the impact and delivery of nicotine in many ways, including designing filters and selecting cigarette paper to maximize the ingestion of nicotine, adding ammonia to make the cigarette taste less harsh, and controlling the physical and chemical make-up of the tobacco blend.

I Was Willing to Trade My Health, Just Not When I'm Being Tricked

I knew smoking was bad for me. I could feel myself losing time on my runs, the headaches, the chemically-induced frustration, the coughing. In my mind, I was making an informed choice-- trading minutes off my life for each cigarette. "Sure," I figured. "I'll make that trade right now, in this moment. I'll quit sometime. It's not that big of a trade."

It was emotional choice, rationalized to myself as a calculated decision, often made when I was stressed, tired, or frustrated. That response to that emotional state made it easy to shrug off the seemingly far-off health consequences, even those upsetting photos on European packs!

Empowered by Knowledge, Breaking Free from Tobacco's Grip

Since that eye-opening realization, I have successfully quit smoking, and it has been over six months since my last cigarette. It hasn't been an easy journey, but once I knew Philip Morris had been pulling one over on me, I couldn't stand their product any more.

hope that sharing my story can inspire others to recognize the manipulative practices of big tobacco and find the strength to quit smoking for good.