What Tobacco is

Tobacco is a plant that has been grown for thousands of years by Native Americans. It's leaves are picked then cured by drying them. The dried leaves are then shredded and either put into a pipe or rolled into a cylinder to smoke. Tobacco has more than seventy different species, but only two are normally used in the modern day. Tobacco is used because of the chemical nicotine found inside when burned. The chemical often eases or calms the user. Tobacco was first thought to have medical properties and was used for the sick, but beliefs have since changed. (Stein)