A lot of stores are moving away from selling cigarettes but one store chain to remove the products is the largest so far.

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Last Generation of Smoking as a Norm

Opened pack full of cigarettes closeup
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I grew up in the last generation when smoking was thought of as the norm or dare I say "cool?" Cigarette vending machines were everywhere. I remember a time you didn't have to be of legal age to buy cigarettes and a kid could go get a pack for one of their parents.

Americans' Thoughts on Smoking Have Changed

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Julien Fournio/Baloulumix/Getty Images
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Smoking peaked in America in 1964 and has been slowly declining ever since. This was due to doctors and scientists' better understanding of the health risks involved with smoking and that was also the year we began hearing from the United States Surgeon General's Reports.

Today 95% of Americans think smoking is harmful. Over the last 20 years, smoking has been slowly banned in public places like bars, restaurants, public restrooms, workplaces, just about anywhere people used to smoke. If there is a designated smoking area, they are usually outside behind most a business or workplaces.

Stores No Longer Selling Cigarettes

Nicole Riley/ThinkStock/GettyStock
Nicole Riley/ThinkStock/GettyStock
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Target has already stopped selling cigarettes. Most Costco locations have stopped selling them. A new law came into play banning cigarettes from being sold in pharmacies so Walgreens, CVS, and others have walked away from selling them.

Walmart is the latest store chain to cease selling cigarettes. It is not yet company-wide but according to WOOD, Walmart is the largest store chain yet to move away from selling tobacco products.

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