Today the U.S. Surgeon General released a report, “The Health Consequences of Smoking —50 Years of Progress.” The report highlights the progress in tobacco control and prevention, while also showcasing new data on the continued health consequences of tobacco use.

The surgeon general's first report in 1964 was groundbreaking and led to an important cultural shift against smoking. Those important findings have been followed up by countless studies on the effects of smoking, which we now know are even worse than we thought.

Physicians often discuss 'moderation' when helping patients change and maintain their health habits, but that is not the case with smoking. No amount of smoking is good and several studies have shown that even a small amount tobacco is very harmful. As a society we need to eliminate smoking from our culture. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women, and if almost half of those cases are from tobacco, then that is a serious problem.

It’s time to move ahead and take steps to prevent all smoking and secondhand smoking related diseases with a goal of reducing the number of smokers worldwide to zero.

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