Q: Does
nicotine
cause
cancer?
Cigarettes cause cancer. Tobacco contains nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive drug.
These facts make a lot of people nervous about nicotine. But it is NOT the nicotine in cigarette smoke that causes cancer.
Nicotine may keep you smoking, but it is the other bad chemicals in cigarettes that make smoking so dangerous.
Here are a few simple things to consider about smoking, nicotine and cancer.
Q: If nicotine does not cause cancer, what does?
A: The tar and chemicals in the smoke vapor cause cancer, not the nicotine.
Q: Why don't the cigarette companies just take the tar out of the tobacco?
A: Tar provides most of the flavor for your cigarette. Less tar, less flavor!
Q: Why don't the cigarette companies just take the nicotine out of the tobacco?
A: You'd stop smoking and they wouldn't get your money!
Tar from a
year’s
worth of
cigarettes
Q: Isn't it better to switch to a low tar, low nicotine cigarettes?
A: No, even though it they may feel better on your chest, chances are you will puff
harder and smoke more of each cigarette to get the nicotine.
Q: I have a hard time quitting smoking. Is there a safer way to get nicotine?
A: Yes, you can get clean nicotine in a nicotine patch, gum, nasal spray, lozenge,
or inhaler; these products don’t have tar.
Q: Won’t I get hooked on nicotine in the patch, gum, nasal spray, lozenge,
or inhaler?
A: Most people find it easy to get off nicotine medicines after a few months.
Cigarettes get you addicted by delivering nicotine quickly to your brain. Nicotine
in smoke enters your lungs as a vapor and reaches your brain in 7 to 10
seconds. That is why most smokers feel satisfied after one or two drags on
a cigarette. Products like the nicotine patch, gum, nasal spray, lozenge,
or inhaler deliver nicotine slowly. Nicotine gets absorbed through the skin or
through the lining of the nose or mouth.
Q: Does nicotine replacement really work, or is it just another way
to get money out of smokers?
A: Nothing will work unless you want it to. Nicotine medications can help by
dulling your cravings for a cigarette and are proven to increase your
chances of quitting.
In a 1994 Hearing before the
Subcommittee on Health and the
Environment, tobacco company exceutives swear that nicotine is not addictive. They lied.
Q: Are light
cigarettes
safer
for you?
Light cigarettes are NOT safer
than smoking regular ones.
Don’t fall for the hype...
Despite all the marketing hype with lighter colors used in
the packaging and official looking statements about tar and
nicotine levels, the truth is light and regular cigarettes are
virtually identical.
The illusion of a light cigarette
comes from nearly invisible vent holes
that are drilled in the filter.
Light cigarettes have vent holes in the filter so they
score lower on smoking machines measuring tar
and nicotine.
See for yourself...
Tear off the paper covering your filter tip and
hold it up to the light. You should be able to
see the tiny vent holes. These holes can get
covered and clogged during smoking. The size
and number of vent holes will change how you
smoke. Bigger vents mean that you take deeper puffs.
Light cigarettes have more
chemical additives!
Close up of
vent holes
in the filter
Cigarette makers often add extra chemicals to hide
the harsh feel of the smoke. The lighter feel of the
smoke makes it easier to inhale the dirty smoke
deeper into the lungs.
Location of vent holes in
the filter
Q: Does the
filter on your
cigarette
really make
it safer?
Most people mistakenly believe that smoking a filtered cigarette is safer than
smoking an nonfiltered cigarette. This is false.
Health studies show that smoking filtered cigarettes does not keep you from getting sick. Filters
do not protect you from bad chemicals and, in some ways, they may be more dangerous than
nonfiltered cigarettes.
Why don’t filters work?
w Filters don’t block all the bad chemicals in smoke.
w Filtered smoke feels milder on the throat, making it easier to take
bigger and deeper puffs.
w Filters help block only the biggest tar particles while letting through the
smaller bits of tar that can travel deeper into your lungs
Close up of a filter with
fibers dangling off
Filters are defective - and the companies know it.
You may be inhaling filter fibers into your lungs.
w Most cigarette filters are made of the same material as camera film
(cellulose acetate).
w Each individual filter is made of thousands of tiny fibers.
w The inside of the filter is painted white to make it appear clean.
w During smoking, these fibers can come off into your mouth and be
inhaled into your lungs.
Charcoal filters are no better.
If you smoke a cigarette with a charcoal filter, not only can you get fibers
in your body, you can also get tiny bits of charcoal.
What cigarette manufacturers will not tell you:
Tobacco industry documents show that they have known about filter fiber
fallout since at least the 1950s.
Carbon particles were released from all cigarettes tested. In some studies,
the particles released from cigarette filters were described as: “…too
numerous to count.”
Memo to Judy Nash from Nancy R. Ryan. Febuary 18, 1982. "Filter particle fallout."
Bates No. 1000805035
“He said when [a filter] plug is cut ...there always remains a few loose,
hard particles of filament. These loose hard pieces of material are then
sucked down into the lungs of the smoker.”
Memo to Mr. O.P. McComas from Anne C. Stubing. May 1, 1957. (no title).
Bates No. 2040015018-2040015020
Don’t be
fooled
The filter on
your cigarette may be
causing you
more harm
than good.
Tar-coated filter fiber
stuck in lung tissue.
Q: Are menthol
cigarettes
safer
for you?
There is no menthol in tobacco plants.
Menthol is added to cigarettes to make the smoke
feel less harsh. But the smoke is still dangerous.
Smokers of menthol cigarettes tend to
hold the smoke in their lungs longer.
This means you get more poisons found in smoke,
like carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is bad for
your heart.
The cooler feel of menthol allows cigarette manufacturers to use cheaper tobaccos. There is nothing refreshing or natural about menthol. Menthol is
an additive put in cigarettes to make you believe
that the cigarette is less dangerous.
This is a lie.
Don’t be fooled by the hype:
While menthol may feel
cool on the throat, it is
simply hiding the harsh
poisons that you are
taking in.
Q: Does a
“natural”
cigarette
mean it’s
safer?
Don’t be sucked in by the advertising.
Labels like “no additives”, and “natural” are just another gimmick to
sell cigarettes.
These labels are misleading They imply that these cigarettes
must be safer – they are not.
Why “Naturals” are NOT so Natural:
Chemicals are sprayed on tobacco leaves to help kill bugs and fungus.
These chemicals end up in the smoke.
Chemicals are added to paper to make the cigarette stay lit even
when you are not puffing.
Filters are made out of the same material as camera film. The inside of
the filter is painted white to appear clean. Chemicals are also sprayed on
the paper covering the filter tip so it does not fall apart in your mouth while
you’re smoking.
Flavoring additives like menthol don’t come from tobacco.
Reprocessed tobacco is sometimes used.
Made from ground up tobacco leaves, stems and stalks, reprocessed
tobacco helps control the nicotine the smoker gets in each cigarette.
n Get a clear glass of warm water
n Take the tobacco out of one cigarette and drop it in the water
n Wait 5 minutes
The tobacco bits that sink to the bottom of the glass are reprocessed
tobacco. The water will turn yellow and orange from the chemical
additives coming off the tobacco bits that sink to the bottom.