5 signs that smokers are on the wrong side of evolution

Smokers may be a dying breed in more ways than one.

Anyone who’s watched Mad Men will know that smoking used to be commonplace in offices, around the kitchen table or in a car full of kids. It just wasn’t a big deal. Over the years, health warnings and smoking bans have changed attitudes to smoking and the days of casually puffing away are a thing of the past. It’s no wonder that more and more smokers are trying to quit smoking. Not only are the health benefits obvious but smoking is increasingly becoming a socially unacceptable pastime. You can already see the signs.

Smokers are now a morality tale for children

You know it’s bad when small children stare at you with pity in their eyes. There have already been calls to ban people smoking in areas like parks or playgrounds within eyeshot of children. That’s where you are now if you’re a smoker. Parents don’t even want their kids looking at you.

You’re standing on the street in the rain

Your mates are sitting in the pub beside the fire and having the craic like normal people. As the sole smoker of the group, your night involves constant trips outside for a quick nicotine hit. With winter around the corner, that usually involves getting battered by sideways rain for four or five minutes at a time. Yay!

Doctors zone out once you tell them you smoke

“How many do you smoke a day?” Nobody wants to answer that question. What’s worse is when the doctor points out that it’s bad for you, as though you've been living in a bubble for the last 20 years. By that stage, you’ve already lost their interest. They’ve dismissed you as damaged goods and they're focused on the next patient - preferably one who isn’t trying to slowly poison themselves.

Smokers are becoming social pariahs

The general attitude to smokers is increasingly one of tolerance as long as they smoke in their own space. Far away. And out of sight and smell of “normal” people. Smokers may not have to ring a bell and shout “Unclean” yet but give it time!

The survival of the fittest theory

The signs are not great for smokers if you think that Darwin was on to something. When your habit is considered the leading cause of preventable death, it's probably time to rethink your life choices. Just like lion taming and riding a motorbike around a Wall of Death, smoking just isn't a sensible bet in the long term.