Why do men & women continue smoking cigarettes now that the dangers of this behavior...?

Why do men & women continue smoking cigarettes now that the dangers of this behavior...?Are well established in the literature, including malignancy, vascular, pulmonary disease and so forth?

Is it the same reason for both men and women?

*I am asking for opinions; I am a light smoker so this question is not at all judgmental, I simply am interested in the views of others.
@First Author, would you kindly provide a citation which has determined that nicotine is more addictive than cocaine, please?
@Nobody Important: Thank you so much for this site, however, I only see the relative potencies of nicotine relative to other substances, it only lists the comparative addictiveness with respect to heroin, regrettably.

Misty
Well, I'm not a smoker but I'd like to add that nicotine has been proven to be far more addictive than cocaine. So there's your answer.

John
I don't have anything intelligent to say, I'm just going to state the obvious; smoking is fvcking retarded.

Nina
I think the addiction is too great. I worked at a cancer hospital. Some of the employees there smoked. This is after seeing first hand what can happen as a result of smoking.

Benny
http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4559
According to the American Heart Asso. Among blacks whits and hispanics, men smoke 10.7 %% MORE THAN WOMEN.

YOU WERE SAYING??

myOp
I can't really understand it myself. Many people don't really believe smoking has such disastrous effects and always come up with some counterexample: "my grandpa smoked since he was 15, now he's 87 and his health is better than mine".

Also, I wouldn't exclude the social component here. Young people start smoking because that's what the group does, or just out of curiosity. Some really do become addicted, some just continue smoking because the think it's a way to relieve stress or perhaps they enjoy socializing during the cigarette break.

I smoked for a few months 5 years ago because of stress but I eventually quit because I hated the taste, the smell, the money I spent. However I'm glad I did that because I'll never wonder whether I missed out on something pleasant...

What do you think? Answer below! Smoking Cessation - Quit Smoking Today. Smoking Cessation helps smokers kick their nicotine addiction, providing tools, information and support for people quitting smoking.

---

Orignal From: Why do men & women continue smoking cigarettes now that the dangers of this behavior...?