EFFECTS OF SMOKING: TOBACCO PRODUCTS

Tobacco is available in several forms. Cigarettes, cigars, and pipes are used for burning and inhaling tobacco. Snuff is a finely ground form of tobacco that can be inhaled, chewed or placed against the gums. Chewing tobacco, also known as "smokeless tobacco," is placed between the gums and teeth for sucking or chewing.

Filtered cigarettes designed to reduce levels of gases such as hydrogen cyanide and hydrocarbons may actually deliver more hazardous carbon monoxide to the user than do non-filtered brands. Some smokers use low-tar and low-nicotine products as an excuse to smoke more cigarettes. This practice is self-defeating because such smokers wind up exposing themselves to more harmful substances than they would if they smoked regular-strength cigarettes.

Cigars, bidis, and clove cigarettes, though not as common as cigarettes, snuff, and chewing tobacco, are still dangerous. Smoking cigars, bidis, and clove cigarettes still puts the smoker at risk for various types of cancers and illnesses. Clove cigarettes contain about 40 percent ground cloves (a spice) and about 60 percent tobacco. Many users mistakenly believe that these products are made entirely of ground cloves and that smoking them eliminates the risks associated with tobacco. In fact, clove cigarettes contain higher levels of tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide than do regular cigarettes. In addition, the numbing effect of eugenol, the active ingredient in cloves, allows smokers to inhale the smoke more deeply. Most users of clove cigarettes are teenagers and young adults who are smoking them under the mistaken assumption that these products are safe.

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