Smoking is a lifestyle choice made by an individual. The problem with smoking is it affects more than the individual. It affects the immediate physical environment of others.

A statewide smoking ban is absolutely necessary in Illinois, along with the rest of the nation. Nonsmokers such as myself must involuntarily breathe in the smoke given off by the burning end of a cigarette. It is not fair I have to be affected by the nasty habit of others.

I understand it is your right to choose whether or not to smoke, but your freedoms end when your choice harms someone.

According to the American Lung Association, secondhand smoke, also known as environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), causes approximately 3,400 lung cancer deaths in adult nonsmokers in the United States each year. Another study found nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke were 25 percent more likely to have coronary heart diseases than those not regularly exposed to smoke.

Cigarette, cigar or pipe smoke affects more than just passersby. Consider restaurant servers and managers. My father has been a restaurant manager for 31 years and, while he eats healthy and exercises regularly, his health is still damaged by the smoke he has to breathe in.

Some may say a person should know what they’re getting into when taking such jobs, but somebody has to work these jobs to make a living. They shouldn’t have to sign up for lung cancer, too.

Levels of ETS in restaurants and bars were found to be two to five times higher than in residences with smokers, according to the ALA.

DeKalb restaurants have been under a smoking ban for about a year. Smokers may opt to visit businesses in Sycamore or other surrounding towns, which then has an impact on restaurants and bars in DeKalb.

However, if a statewide smoking ban was put into effect, this would level out competition from one city to another. A restaurant in a smoke-free city would not have to worry about losing customers to a city that allows smoking, because all would be on the same playing field.

A statewide smoking ban is fair to those who have to work in smoke-filled environments, and to non-smoking customers. While a smoking ban may be inconvenient for smokers, they have inconvenienced my health and the well-being of nonsmokers for long enough.