Smokeless tobacco

Smokeless tobacco accounts for a significant and growing portion of global tobacco use, especially in South Asia. Over 25 distinct types of smokeless tobacco products are used worldwide, including both commercialized and local or homegrown products, used orally and nasally. Some products combine tobacco with substantial amounts of chemical additives and other plant material that may confer additional risk to the user. Moreover, smokeless tobacco products contain many of the toxins and carcinogens found in cigarettes, and thus result in many of the same diseases caused by smoking. In addition, smokeless tobacco use increases periodontal disease, tooth loss, and precancerous mouth lesions.
Despite the harm from smokeless tobacco use to both individuals and society at large, these products are not sufficiently regulated in many countries. The landscape of smokeless tobacco manufacturing and marketing is rapidly evolving. The largest American, British, and Japanese cigarette companies have entered the smokeless tobacco market and are branding their smokeless products as an extension of cigarette brands,a complement to be used in smoke-free environments. Understanding this “dual-use” consumption pattern will be essential to developing an appropriate regulatory structure for smokeless tobacco.

Global patterns of smokeless tobacco use vary widely. The import and sale of smokeless tobacco products are banned in 40 countries and areas. In some countries, like Finland and Egypt, men use smokeless tobacco products in much greater numbers than women because such products are perceived as masculine; in countries like South Africa, Thailand, and Bangladesh, women use smokeless tobacco products more than men because they are seen as a discreet way to consume tobacco.
Research addressing smokeless tobacco is limited. Monitoring and surveillance systems are scarce, and significant research gaps exist in identifying ingredients, additives, and toxicities of smokeless tobacco products. Little is known about product pricing, substitution of smokeless tobacco for smoked tobacco, and youth susceptibility to smokeless tobacco use. Policies to control smokeless tobacco are underdeveloped. The integration of smokeless tobacco control measures into the wider framework of tobacco control can help to curb its use.

Consumer Says:

Beta ek gutka khane ka itna shauk hai to ek kaam kar. Ek dost aur banna. Kaandha deney ke kaam aayega.

Son, if you are so fond of eating gutka [chewing tobacco], make sure you make a friend so that you have someone to help carry your coffin.

Title track from Bollywood movie, Wanted, India

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THE INDUSTRY Says:

We adopted our core strategy for growth: and that was to expand the smokeless tobacco category by converting adult smokers to smokeless tobacco.

Daniel Butler, President, U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company
Source: Tobaccoatlas.org

Best Brands

Yves Saint Laurent - Trendy Product

Anyone who has something to do with the fashion industry is aware of the fact that cigarettes are nearly more of a habit than the true clothing.

Nicotine controls your hunger and the fashion advertises the trend to be slim, as a result it has become the norm. The majority of cigarette breaks occur in the course of the day than anything else and from time to time they are also replaced for a lunch break. Not just that, but smoking them has been considered cool and stylish being displayed in advertising campaigns all over the world and even appearing on the stage at Louis Vuitton’s Fall show.

Yves Saint Laurent is the up to date high-fashion label to set its name on a package of cigarettes(here). To tell the truth, the package is appealing and trendy, with its black and gold colors used in the design practically making us ignore that its contents are habit-growing and can in fact lead to diverse diseases over time. The color scheme is similar of the fashion house’s “Opium” fragrance bottles which are fitting.

YSL is not the very first high-class brand to offer its name to cigarettes. For instance Pierre Cardin, Versace, Givenchy, Christian Lacroix and Cartier have all offered their well-known names to cigarette manufacturers. Despite the fact that it is not the healthiest kind of revenue, nicotine is one of the world’s largest businesses and therefore it is a good idea that some of the world’s most recognized brands would attempt to take advantage.

A smoke, a book, a cup of coffee

“A smoke, a book, a cup of coffee.

These are the little things that get us through this sometimes weary world and all the rainy days.”

  R.M. Engelhardt, The Resurrection Waltz Poems R.M. Engelhardt

I used to smoke cigarettes, ten a day, but gave up when I was 28. Now my vice is several cups of coffee a day, which isn't great if you're prone to weak bones as I am, as caffeine can leach calcium.
Britt Ekland
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/cigarettes.html#eRCCc2CyXS2C430C.99

I used to smoke cigarettes, ten a day, but gave up when I was 28. Now my vice is several cups of coffee a day, which isn't great if you're prone to weak bones as I am, as caffeine can leach calcium.
Britt Ekland
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/cigarettes.html#eRCCc2CyXS2C430C.99

LM Style

Marlboro Man

Marlboro man is American cowboy and main character of Marlboro country, the best cigarette advertisement of the century, world recognized cigarette advertisement character, masculine trademark and macho icon. Marlboro man is the ad embodiment that was used by tobacco producer Philip Morris for the Marlboro cigarettes that primarily was a lady smoking brand.

The history of Marlboro man begins in 1954. The parent father of Marlboro Man was Leo Burnet- advertisement agent. P. Morris Tobacco Company introduced an innovation in producing of Marlboro cigarettes. This novelty ought to result a 3600 change of target smoking tobacco group.

This was the Burnet’s main purpose in creating the advertisement for new Marlboro cigarettes. Looking for the resolution, Leo had done a brainstorming: “What’ the masculine symbol people can think of?” This seems to be a reasonable and successful idea. The answer came from the wild New Mexico, Ranch in Cimarron that was “a real cowboy on his chaps and horse”. In 1972, this tobacco ad brought to Marlboro cigarettes the rank of world best selling tobacco product .And most famous one too. Every image of a cowboy, western landscape and/or red color keeps in mind the Marlboro trademark and it doesn’t matter if these images are accompanied or no by slogan or brand name.

Marlboro man that lives in Marlboro country becomes the symbol of freedom, wildness and independence. The famous cowboy is placed on the first place from the “101 most influential people who never lived” in Imaginary Luminaries. It also was claimed “the brand image of the century”.

The roles of the Marlboro man were portrayed by famous people as : actor and author William Thourlby (the first Marlboro Man), Quarterback Charley Conerly, Darrell Winfield, Dick Hammer, Brad Johnson, Bill Dutra, Dean Myers, Robert Norris, Wayne McLaren, David McLean and Tom Mattox.

More Info

1. Katie Connolly. "Six ads that changed the way you think". BBC.
2. Vintage Ads: 1975 "Marlboro Country" ad campaign
3. Kilgannon, Corey. "Face of Marlboro Prefers to Be Alone". New York Times. 
4. "An Ex-Marlboro Man Who Can Really Ride, Brad Johnson Adds Sigh Appeal to Always". People.
5. 28 May 2001 "Malboro Manslaughter"

How many sites selling cigarettes are there in the USA?

Tobacco products are a major retail item in the USA. Over 47 million adults and 4 million teenagers smoke cigarettes. Annual sales of tobacco products exceed $40 billion and there are approximately 543 000 tobacco retailers in the country. Smokers have traditionally purchased their cigarettes either by the pack or the carton from local retail outlets. These local retail outlets are now facing new competition from the growing number of e-commerce sites. Internet cigarette vendors (ICVs) include those that sell online exclusively, as well as local “brick and mortar” retail outlets that advertise and sell tobacco products on the internet. More Americans are online than ever, and many of them are purchasing products on the internet. As of August 2000, over 116.5 million Americans were online and 42% of US households had a computer with internet access. Over 47% of American internet users have purchased something online, and consumers report that one of the primary attractions of online shopping is finding low prices.

Increased state taxes on cigarettes have fuelled demand among smokers who seek refuge from escalating retail prices. In the USA, state excise taxes vary considerably. Vendors on Indian reservations sell tax-free cigarettes, and excise taxes are low in tobacco producing states such as Virginia ($.025 per pack of 20 cigarettes), Kentucky ($.03), and North Carolina ($.05). High excise taxes are featured in states such as California ($.87), Alaska ($1.00), Hawaii ($1.00), and New York ($1.11). Given that each carton contains 10 packs, a smoker buying cigarettes in New York will pay over $10.00 more per carton in excise taxes than a smoker in Virginia. In the past, when a state raised its excise tax on cigarettes, smokers who did not quit would either pay the increased price, or travel to Indian reservations or neighbouring states with cheaper prices. However, the internet offers the possibility of purchasing from Indian reservations or from states with lower excise taxes without having to physically drive there. A ready source of cheap cigarettes is now a mouse click away. This may have significant public health implications because tobacco consumption is adversely affected by price. When cigarette prices increase, smokers are likely to smoke less, change to cheaper generic brands, or quit smoking altogether. For instance, in California a 50 cent increase in state excise taxes (proposition 10) was followed by a 29% decrease in cigarette sales. Although the majority of this decrease was probably caused by reduced consumption, media reports speculated that many California smokers were simply avoiding high taxes by buying directly from internet vendors.

To the best of our knowledge, no published peer reviewed studies have examined web sites that sell cigarettes. The present study attempts to fill this void in the literature by using a rigorous internet based searching and sampling methodology to estimate the number of internet cigarette vendors. In addition, a standardised coding system is used to determine their characteristics including geographic location, presence of age and health warnings, and sales and marketing practices.

Tobacco RD

Nicotine Increases Exercise Endurance

In my lectures on tobacco harm reduction I compare the properties of nicotine with those of caffeine (see slides at left).  Despite some obvious differences, the drugs have remarkably similar effects.  I have just found a study from 2006 showing that “…nicotine administration during moderate-intensity exercise delays fatigue, with a significant improvement of 17% [±7%] in time to exhaustion. This observation is similar to observations of the effects of caffeine supplementation.” (Available at the journal Experimental Physiology here).

Authors Toby Műndel and David A. Jones of the Human Performance Laboratory, School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, The University of Birmingham (United Kingdom), recruited 12 healthy non-smoking men and asked them to cycle in a laboratory setting at a moderate pace until exhausted on two occasions.  Subjects randomly applied either a 7 milligram nicotine patch or a placebo patch the evening before.  

Ten subjects who wore the nicotine patch cycled for 70 minutes – about 17% longer than the 62 minutes cycled by those with the placebo patch.  Nicotine had no effect on heart rate or respiratory parameters, and it “…did not alter the perception of effort… associated with progressive fatigue.”  The researchers noted that “…activity of dopamine pathways has

been suggested to be associated with improved endurance exercise performance.”  In other words, nicotine’s endurance boost stemmed from its effect on the brain. 

As I mentioned in 2011, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is considering labeling nicotine a performance-enhancing drug.  However, WADA could treat nicotine as it has caffeine, summarized this way by the agency in 2012 (here):

“Caffeine was removed from the Prohibited List in 2004. Its use in sport is not prohibited.  Many experts believe that caffeine is ubiquitous in beverages and food and that reducing the threshold might therefore create the risk of sanctioning athletes for social or diet consumption of caffeine.  In addition, caffeine is metabolized at very different rates in individuals.”

Since using nicotine is a “social” choice and the substance is metabolized at very different rates, one can only hope that WADA applies such a reasoned, practical analysis to it as well.

Cigar Versus Cigarette Smoking

There are no buts about it – smoking is bad for you. We all know that, but for those who crave a smoke

every once in a while, is there a less harmful option between cigars and cigarettes? There are many myths regarding the differences between these two smoking options. In this article, we’ll set the record straight.

Differences Between Cigars And Cigarettes

To figure out whether cigars or cigarettes are worse for your health, it’s important to first understand the differences between these two smoking options. The following are some of the key differences between cigars and cigarettes:

• Size: Cigars are much larger than cigarettes, with some measuring over 7 inches in length.
• Time: Since cigars are so much larger than cigarettes, they take longer to smoke. With larger cigars, it takes about 1 to 2 hours to smoke one. Cigarettes are generally smoked in less than 10 minutes.
• Filters: Most cigars do not have filters, while cigarettes do.
• Inhaling: Those who smoke cigarettes inhale the smoke into their lungs. Cigar smokers generally do not inhale the smoke; they let it sit in their mouth and throat instead.
• Tobacco types: Cigarettes are made from different blends of unfermented tobaccos. Cigars, on the other hand, are made from a single type of fermented and air-cured tobacco.
• Tobacco amounts: Cigarettes generally contain less than 1 gram of tobacco each. A cigar typically contains about 5 to 20 grams of tobacco.
• Wrapper: Cigars have less porous wrappers than cigarettes, which makes the burning of the tobacco inside less complete.
• Tar: Cigars have more tar per gram of tobacco smoked when compared to cigarettes.

Possible Dangers

The differences between cigars and cigarettes listed above account for many of the reasons that cigars are actually worse for you than cigarettes in most cases. First of all, the ingredients in cigars are in such larger quantities that many cigar smokers don’t realize the impact. For example, it could take 15 to 20 cigarettes to equal the same amount of tobacco in one large cigar. Therefore, regular cigar smokers often don’t realize that their habit could be the equivalent of smoking a pack a day – or more.
(If you’re trying to kick the habit, read Tips On How To Quit Smoking As Soon As Possible.)
Secondly, the size of the cigar accounts for much more exposure to second-hand cigar smoke. In addition to the cigar smoke that goes inside a smoker’s mouth and throat, many of these individuals sit in a cigar smoke-filled area for an hour or more while they smoke. In addition to that, it can take hours for that smoke to dissipate inside someone’s home. This second-hand smoke contains dozens of cancer-causing chemicals, some of which occur in higher quantities than in cigarette smoke. This is partially due to the cigars’ nonporous wrappers which lead to an increase in toxin concentration.
The process by which cigars are made also makes them a health hazard. The fermentation process used for cigar tobacco leads to high concentrations of nitrosamines, which can cause cancer.
Despite this information, cigarettes are just as bad for you. Both cigars and cigarettes can cause numerous types of cancer, including cancer of the lungs, mouth, tongue and esophagus. In addition, oral diseases such as gum disease may occur as the result of smoking. Cardiovascular diseases like heart disease, coronary artery disease, COPD and emphysema are much more common among smokers than non-smokers.

Myths About Cigars

Many cigarette smokers try smoking cigars because they believe they are less harmful. However, most of the myths about cigars aren’t true. For example:

• Cigars aren’t addictive. Cigars contain high levels of nicotine, which is the chemical that causes addiction. You can still get nicotine in your system even if you don’t inhale the smoke into your lungs because it is also absorbed through the lining in the mouth.
• Not inhaling makes them safer. Cigar smokers usually don’t inhale the smoke. However, that just means that they are more likely to get cancer in their lips, mouth, tongue or throat instead of in their lungs. The health risks still exist and the smoker is still exposed to cancer-causing chemicals.
• Cigars don’t have Surgeon General’s health warnings, so they are safer. Unfortunately, cigars are not regulated in the same way as cigarettes. Many are sold without any health warning label, particularly those which are imported. This lack of regulations can actually lead to cigars being more hazardous to your health than cigarettes.

It’s important to remember that, even if cigars are often worse for your health compared to cigarettes, neither of these smoking options are good for you. Both products are highly addictive and there is no safe level of tobacco use. There are several ways you can get help to quit smoking, including the Cancer.gov website (link below).

Sources:

• Mayo Clinic
• Cancer.gov
• QuitSmokingSupport.com