Smoking, Second Hand Smoke & Spit Tobacco

Smoking

Just what's in a cigarette?

Actually, aside from tobacco, we are not entirely sure. Cigarettes are one of the few products of any sort on the market that aren't regulated. Food has to have a list of ingredients, all clothes have tags describing the fabric, electric devices are UL approved - but cigarettes are entirely unregulated. The tobacco companies have released lists of additives to tobacco, but trusting someone who would say under oath, as the CEOs of all the major companies have, that nicotine isn't addictive is probably not a good idea. So we have to go with what the Federal Trade Commission found in the smoke that comes out of burning cigarettes. Of the more than 4,000 chemicals that the FTC found, over 50 are known human carcinogens, meaning they have been proven to cause cancer not only in lab animals but also in people. In the end it's usually not the nicotine that kills people - it's these other chemicals.

Carbon Monoxide

Carbon monoxide is the same odorless, colorless gas that comes out the tailpipe of your car or a faulty gas heater. In high enough concentrations it is deadly; in lower doses it causes shortness of breath and increased heart rate. Normally, red blood cells carry oxygen throughout the body by binding it to a molecule called hemoglobin. When a person smokes, carbon monoxide (rather than oxygen) attaches itself to hemoglobin and deactivates these red blood cells for extended periods of time. Eventually the carbon monoxide falls off or the red blood cells are replaced. However, carbon monoxide is replaced by continued smoking. This is one of the key reasons athletes almost never smoke, as over 10% of the body's hemoglobin can be inactivated at any one time.

The body is able to eliminate most of the carbon monoxide fairly quickly. Most people who quit feel more energetic and less short of breath within a few days of quitting.

Tar

Tar is the dark substance that actually carries nicotine to the lungs. Along with the nicotine it also carries the long list of other chemicals discussed above.

Benzene, Radon, and Other Nasty Stuff

These are chemicals that the EPA has said you don't want in your home since they cause cancer. Inhaling them through a small white tube all day long is probably just as bad. Enough said.

Nicotine

Although only one of many dangerous substances in cigarettes, nicotine is the drug responsible for making cigarettes so addictive. In fact, studies have shown nicotine to be as or more addictive than heroin and cocaine. Within seven seconds of inhaling on a cigarette, nicotine has reached your brain. The drug acts upon receptor cells providing the "hit" that your body expects. This triggers various responses in your body; your heartbeat and breathing rate go up and blood vessels constrict. By the time you have extinguished the cigarette, the nicotine level in your blood will have peaked; within a half-hour your body will have cleaned it out of the blood stream. This spiking is part of what makes cigarettes so addictive. The method of delivery - direct to the lungs and then to the brain - and the intensity of its effects, help to make nicotine extremely addictive.

In the morning, most smokers inhale deeply on their first cigarettes as the nicotine content in the blood has dropped overnight and they are quite practically in withdrawal. In reality smokers spend much of their time in withdrawal; stress, anxiety, and boredom are all heightened by daily withdrawal in between cigarettes. In between, cigarettes every smoker goes through a small scale version of what the quitter does. Over the day the smoker smokes enough cigarettes to maintain a sufficient nicotine blood level to prevent these withdrawal symptoms. Usually the minimum number to achieve this (regardless of nicotine content of the cigarette) is 10-12 cigarettes spaced over the day. Generally this explains why people who smoke less than half a pack a day are uncommon.

Nicotine also acts as a vasoconstrictor, meaning it decreases the diameter of your blood vessels making it more difficult for blood to flow through the body. This can lead to higher blood pressure and forces the heart to work harder. It may be one of the reasons for increases heart disease in long time smokers. More obvious indications are cold or clammy hands, as the extremities do not receive as much blood.

Just how and why nicotine affects the brain the way it does is poorly understood. While we know that it can act as both a stimulant (giving smokers a lift) or a depressant (relaxing smokers when they feel tense, or stressed). Much of this seems dependent upon dosage and current levels of nicotine in the blood.

The Toll of Tobacco in Idaho

Smoking kills more people each year than alcohol, AIDS, car crashes, illegal drugs, murders, and suicides combined -- and thousands more die from other tobacco-related causes, such as secondhand smoke or spit-tobacco use.

Secondhand Smoke

What is secondhand smoke?

Secondhand smoke is a mixture of the smoke given off by the burning end of a cigarette, pipe, or cigar, and the smoke that is exhaled from the lungs of the smoker.

Secondhand smoke is also called environmental tobacco smoke (ETS); exposure to secondhand smoke is often called involuntary smoking or passive smoking.

Secondhand smoke may also cause thousands of healthy children to develop asthma each year. Infants and very young children who breathe secondhand smoke are more likely to get lung infections, resulting in thousands of hospitalizations each year.

It is also believed that secondhand smoke is a cause of low birth weight, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), and many fire-related injuries.

What can I do to reduce children's health risks from secondhand smoke?

Spit Tobacco

What's in spit tobacco?

There are two forms of spit tobacco chewing tobacco and snuff. Chewing tobacco is usually sold as leaf tobacco (packaged in a pouch) or plug tobacco (in brick form) and both are put between the cheek and gum. Users keep chewing tobacco in their mouths for several hours to get a continuous high from the nicotine in the tobacco. Snuff is a powdered tobacco (usually sold in cans) that is put between the lower lip and the gum. Just a pinch is all that's needed to release the nicotine, which is then swiftly absorbed into the bloodstream, resulting in a quick high.

What is spit tobacco?

Chemicals. Keep in mind that the spit tobacco you or your friends are putting into your mouths contains many chemicals that can have a harmful effect on your health.

The chemicals contained in chew or snuff are what make you high. They also make it very hard to quit. Why? Every time you use smokeless tobacco your body adjusts to the amount of tobacco needed to get that high. Then you need a little more tobacco to get the same feeling. You see, your body gets used to the chemicals you give it. Pretty soon you'll need more smokeless tobacco, more often or you'll need stronger spit tobacco to reach the same level. This process is called addiction.

Some people say spit tobacco is okay because there's no smoke, like a cigarette has. Don't believe them. It's not a safe alternative to smoking. When you use chew, you just move health problems from your lungs to your mouth.

What are the physical and mental effects of spit tobacco?

What are the early warning signs when using spit tobacco?

Even if you don't find a problem today, see your doctor or dentist every three months to have your mouth checked. Your chances for a cure are higher if oral cancer is found early.

How can I quit?

Even though it is very difficult to quit using spit tobacco, it can be done. Read the following tips to quit for some helpful ideas to kick the habit. Remember, most people don't start chewing on their own, so don't try quitting on your own. Ask for help and positive reinforcement from your support groups (friends, parents, coaches, teachers, whomever...).