烟草

烟草(tobacco)

烟草指的是众多烟草属植物中的任何一种，也指数种经过加工的叶片，後者通过各种不同的方法加工後制成烟丝、鼻烟、嚼烟或提取尼古丁。普通烟草原产於南美洲、墨西哥和西印度群岛。普通烟草通常高达1～2公尺，开有粉红色的花朵并生有大块的叶片，叶片的长度可达0.6～1公尺，宽度则约为长度的一半。当哥伦布抵达美洲时，他发现美洲本土人不但像现在的人们一样吸烟，同时还在宗教仪式中使用烟草。由於相信烟草的医药作用，烟草被引入欧洲和世界其他地区，并成为英国殖民者与欧洲国家交换制成品的主要物品。现在由於考虑到吸食烟草对健康产生极大的危害，包括各种癌症和呼吸道疾病，导致人们开始反对吸烟，但是全球吸烟者的数量仍在继续上升。世界卫生组织评估表示，吸烟将导致每年三百万人的死亡，并且在二十年内，因吸烟死亡的人数将超过任何一种疾病所导致的死亡人数。

English version：

tobacco

Any of numerous species of plants in the genus Nicotiana, or the cured leaves of several of the species, used after processing in various ways for smoking, snuffing, chewing, and extracting of nicotine. Native to South America, Mexico, and the West Indies, common tobacco (N. tabacum) grows 4-6 ft (1-2 m) high and bears usually pink flowers and huge leaves, as long as 2-3 ft (0.6-1 m) and about half as wide. When Christopher Columbus reached the Americas, he reported natives using tobacco as it is used today, as well as in religious ceremonies. Believed to have medicinal properties, tobacco was introduced into Europe and the rest of the world, becoming the chief commodity that British colonists exchanged for European manufactured articles. Awareness of the numerous serious health risks posed by tobacco, including various cancers and a range of respiratory diseases, has led to campaigns against its use, but the number of tobacco users worldwide continues to rise. The World Health Organization estimates that smoking now causes three million deaths annually and within two decades will cause more deaths than any single disease.