Introduction: Today, we're exploring the topic of smoking and the tobacco industry. From movies to music videos, ads and high-fashion photo shoots, cigarettes have been a staple of our culture. Whether we're thinking of the cool or the mysteriously aloof girl, we all seem to have a clear image in our heads about what smoking represents. This is no coincidence since the billion-dollar has proved to be both and inventive when it comes up with ideas to keep people on their products, despite the . So whether you're a smoker or not, stay with us until the end to get your facts fix for today. If you are new here, welcome, be sure to subscribe and follow us on instagram at Alux. Here are 15 things you didn't know about the tobacco industry..

Number 1
Tobacco can be everywhere. It's probably no news for most tobacco aficionados, but did you know that it can actually be grown anywhere with the exception of the north and south poles. Any warm and moist is enough for the plans to thrive, which makes it really easy to in large quantities. So much so that in the US alone, tobacco farms manage to 800 million pounds across 19 different states. , farmers in North Carolina, Georgia and Kentucky manage to produce a whopping 80 percent of that number. You can even find online for growing your own tobacco, which can be a rather interesting gardening activity if you're not into planting vegetables.

Number 2
Marlboro is the number one cigarette since 1924. Cigarette brands are instantly even by : it's partly because of and partly because some of them have been around for many years. Actually, if you ask anyone to name a few brands off the top of their head, they're very likely to say Marlboro. This classic has been around for more than a hundred years and it's the number-one cigarette brand in the world with 282 billion cigarettes produced outside of the US and China in 2016. Its secret : Philip Morris actually used to create a very type of cigarette and soon after followed suit..

Number 4
Smoking is the main cause of related to cancer and other diseases. Every time someone takes a , they actually put 7,000 into their and around 69 carcinogens. For example, the chemical benzene is a cause of and cigarettes have plenty of it. Actually one in eight cancers are caused by smoking and even smokers can suffer a lung cancer. In fact a staggering 33,000 non-smokers die of each year from . Another disease caused by smoking is and the list goes on and on. A list of anti-smoking campaigns cover the issue, trying to make people understand the risks they expose themselves to, but a potential health problem rarely stops anyone from enjoying their cigar.

Number 5
Philip Morris International is the richest tobacco producer with a market capital of one hundred and seventy six point two billion dollars. Cigarette companies generate a ton of revenue, but again Philip Morris International tops all of those lists. Also PMI doesn't just make Marlboros but they Virginia Slims, Parliament, L&M and the Basic or Commander among many others. Founded in 1874 in London, Philip Morris started out with just one shop and today dominates the . They make around seven point eight billion dollars per year in the form of and the European Union is a big fan: being responsible for more than of the company's total revenue. Their headquarters are in New York and the present CEO Andre Calantzopoulos owns around one percent stake in the company.

Number 6
Advertising made smoking normal. Advertising plays a huge role in shaping our daily , often normalizing certain . Sure people have smoked before in the past but 20th century advertising downright told people that smoking cigarettes is actually good for your health. What's more? Ads cigarettes by creating this image of rebellion, confidence, independence and freedom. For example Marlboro Man and R.J. Reynolds, all the Joe Camel appealed directly to young people and represented the good old American Dream. There have even been some initiatives to the glamorization of smoking in movies, music videos different ads, and other media but nothing too concrete ever came out of that .

Number 7
An orangutan was filmed smoking at a zoo. Smoking can be seen in a lot of places but it's usually done by actual people. Well ! it seems that animals can pick up the habit too, probably by imitation. A viral video of an orangutan smoking a cigarette at a zoo in Indonesia generated a lot of . The 22 year old orangutan named Odin, was the center of attention to the seeming of visitors. The video shows someone throwing a lit cigarette in the animals enclosure, who promptly picks it up and starts puffing away. Animal rights activists were downright furious since this is not the first incident to call into Bandung zoos treatment of its animals. It actually closed temporarily in 2016 after an incident involving an elephant's alleged abuse and death.

Number 8
Nicotine is as as heroin or cocaine. Sure James Dean looked cool and Carrie Bradshaw was never seen after smoking her pack a day. What the cool ads don't tell you is that nicotine, can be as addictive as powerful drugs like heroin or cocaine. It usually starts with a person having just one cigarette per day, and progresses to three and even one pack per day as they eventually get used to the nicotine and need more of it to get the same . Unfortunately, this means that despite the very effects, people really do have a very hard time , and it's not just because of a lack of . In fact some of them really can't to quit at all.

Number 9
It a TV series. If you ask anyone to name a few things about the 60s, they'd surely think mostly about hippies, great music and progress. But that's just a part of how people were back then, and the very popular TV series Mad Men does just that. The show follows the professional and personal lives of ad people, working in agencies in an age where smoking was the . In fact the very first episode called 'Smoke gets in your eyes', centers around Don Draper, a talented creative director, who comes up with a brilliant idea to sell cigarettes the of health risks. The show even got real with its viewers, when it explored a character's lung cancer and subsequent death.

Number 10
America billions of dollars on smokers only. Sure, tobacco companies make lots of money, so that might be okay for the economy . Well, not so fast. Tobacco is the main cause of . Yet in the US, this deadly habit costs around 300 billion dollars. About 170 billion dollars is used for treating and 156 billion represents a loss of productivity in the workplace when people get sick, die, or get secondhand smoke. Adding in the negative environmental impact, and it's safe to say that, well, companies are the ones who profit and the is scrambling to patch things up. But just as a side note, since some of the finest cigars come from Cuba, make sure to check out our video, 15 things you didn't know about Cuba to learn some more about that amazing country.

Number 11
New IQOS and studies are scary. It's no wonder that many efforts have been targeted at getting people to quit smoking and turn against the billion-dollar tobacco industry. However, these companies are nothing if not and they've managed to invent a new product that keeps you , the e-cigarette. IQOS were designed by Philip Morris and apparently by heating the tobacco, there are actually less dangerous chemicals by smokers. Well, new studies have shown that they are in fact than regular cigarettes and the company is rumored to have conducted in order to get on the market. However they are available in 25 countries and you might even see people using them indoors since its claimed they don't produce smoke.

Number 12
By 2020, you'll pay more than ten dollars for a pack of cigarettes in France. Imagine this French person, sophisticated, stylish and a smoker. Indeed, France is known for its love of smoking so much so that around 28% of French adults are smokers, compared to 17% in the u.s, it's no wonder that the government is seriously worried about public health. A cigarette pack costs around 8 euros now or 9 dollars and 80 cents, which is a pretty steep price, but they're actually aiming to it to 10 euros, or around 12 dollars in just two years. This has also people but the cold hard facts are : each year smoking causes 78,000 preventable deaths in France.

Number 13
Smoking can if you get a job or not. To hire or not to hire smokers. It might seem like this factor shouldn't be a on your , but at least in New Zealand new job ads reference non-smokers only or preferred. Although it seems unfair to many of us, and people are crying discrimination, it is not to not hire smokers. Companies might even go as far as to outright ban smoking at the workplace, it is outside. Plus employees claim that they have a right to not the side effects of smoking and even going as far as to say that smokers , especially in their direct relationship with clients.

Number 14
In Norway people snuff tobacco. Another European country that loves tobacco is Norway but don't expect to see lots of people . Instead, love to get their nicotine fix by using 'snus' a form of snuff. The sale of this product is illegal in the EU except for Norway's neighbor Sweden which has the rights to and sell it. Snus come in little tea-bag shaped portions and are made of 50% water and 30% tobacco. People put them on their under their and keep it for as long as they want. Some snus lovers use it around 13 to 15 hours a day, essentially their whole awake time.

Number 15
Cigarettes have the same composition as urine. What really makes cigarettes so addictive? Well, it turns out that different brands have different ways of . They actually their products to make it faster for smokers to get their fix or to have cigarettes taste differently. One of the chemicals that helped to the flavor is urea, a compound that is found in, you guessed it, urine. Other additives are nicotine, , , and arsenic. Do they sound deadly? That's because they are all and toxic, carcinogenic no matter the dosage. And Aluxers, that is a wrap. We know that some of you love smoking and probably some others are very against it. No matter which side of the fence you're on, we're curious to know. Do you think that an in cigarette costs is an way to reduce consumption. Oh and since you're still here, we've got one more fact just for you.

Number 16
Cigarette smoke can get in . This might seem like a no-brainer. But actually, many people don't realize the of the risks they're taking when smoking, especially when . Mothers can experience a in milk production. And since it takes seconds for the chemicals to reach many parts of their bodies their milk is no exception. for the baby include , and can eventually result in death. Unfortunately, 16% of American women don't quit smoking during with devastating consequences such as sudden infant death syndrome and .
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