Chew Tobacco: Just Spittin’ Stupid

You don’t smoke it … you don’t inhale it … there’s no secondhand smoke to offend others; it can’t be as bad as cigarettes, right? Wrong! Smokeless tobacco, also known as chewing tobacco or snus, is every bit as dangerous to your health as cigarettes - and, some might argue, equally offensive. Some of its negative effects include:

– Bad breath and stained teeth

– Mouth sores (about 70% of users get them)

– Cracked and bleeding lips and gums

– Receding gums, leading to tooth loss

– Heart problems (increased heart rate, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat)

– Cancer of the mouth, tongue, throat, and esophagus

Young male athletes are frequent users of smokeless tobacco, and are more susceptible to addiction than female users (who reportedly use it for weight control). Baseball players who use smokeless tobacco have been unfortunate role models for young athletes, and many have suffered the consequences of its use. Baseball great Babe Ruth, for example, who used chewing tobacco, died at 52 of a cancerous tumor in his throat.

Rodeos and associated community events have long been venues for smokeless tobacco promotion and use; however, Buck Tobacco, a national program working against rodeo/tobacco linkages, has had some success. It was recently announced that the U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company will cease sponsoring Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) events in 2010.

Smokeless tobacco use is also much more prevalent in rural areas. In 2008, compared with a statewide average of 4.2 teens per 100, the Shasta County region had 6.8 users per 100, an increase from 3.0 statewide and 5.4 Shasta County teens since 2002, respectively. As cigarette use declines in the United States, smokeless products are the only growing segment of the tobacco industry. Manufacturers are facing the challenge of attracting (and addicting) new customers through the introduction of new smokeless and spitless products, higher levels of nicotine in their products, and enhanced marketing techniques.

Marketing of flavored snus (snuff contained in a teabag-like pouch) has been particularly effective with young tobacco users. Other enticements include flavored nicotine orbs, strips, and sticks. Although the FDA has banned flavored cigarettes, it has not yet taken action on other flavored smokeless tobacco products, which are more likely to appeal to these young users. Another concern with these new products is potential appeal to very young children as “candy” - in fact, there have been several reported instances of toddlers suffering mild poisonings from their ingestion. According to a Pediatrics Journal study, one orb, which contains approximately 1 milligram of nicotine, would be enough to sicken a small child, and several could be lethal.

Smokeless tobacco has also been promoted as a possible aid for quitting smoking, but a recent University of Florida study indicated that its use not only has little to no effect on smoking cessation, it can serve as a gateway drug that leads to smoking. Young U.S. male subjects who regularly used smokeless tobacco were three times more likely to become smokers at the end of the four-year study. The U.S. Surgeon General has concluded that smokeless tobacco use can lead to nicotine addiction, and the National Institutes of Health continues to assert that snuff is not safe due to its carcinogenic substances.

Bottom line: Do not believe the tobacco companies’ assertions about the safety of their smoke-free tobacco products. There is no safe tobacco in any form.