How much do you spend in a week on cigarettes? How much in a year?
Let’s say you smoke a pack of cigarettes a day. At $10 a pack, that means you’re blowing $10 a day, $70 a week and about $3,650 a year on smoking. A lot of money.
But you’re not the only one spending. In 1993 the World Bank estimated that tobacco cost the global economy $200 billion (US) each year—$70 billion of this in the developing world. In 2002, tobacco use cost the Canadian economy an estimated $17 billion, including $1.8 billion in Alberta. These figures include direct health-care costs, missed days at work, lower worker productivity, increased life insurance premiums, the costs for smoking areas at work, fire damages, residential care costs, disability and lost income from dying young.
It costs employers $2,565 more per year to employ someone who smokes than to employ someone who doesn't smoke. This cost includes increased sick days, breaks, life insurance premiums and smoking areas.
There’s no doubt about it. Smoking costs. A lot.
Quick facts
- A week of buying a pack of cigarettes per day is like buying three CDs or two brand-new DVDs or two tickets to a concert.
- A year of buying a pack of cigarettes per day is like buying a brand new, 50-inch widescreen flat-panel TV!
- In 2002, tobacco use cost Albertans about $1.8 billion, including $470.6 million in direct health-care costs.
- In 2002, tobacco use cost Canadians about $17 billion, including $4.4 billion in direct health-care costs.
- Tobacco use costs the global economy $200 billion (US) each year.
