Cigar Smoke As Hazardous as Cigarettes

Smoking a fine Cuban along with a good single malt whisky may be a romantic image to a growing number of cigar aficionados, however, even those who don’t inhale cigar smoke are at an increased risk for developing cancers.

Most people are under the impression that cigar smoking is less hazardous than cigarettes but in truth they contain the same and possibly more toxic and cancer-causing chemicals than cigarettes.  And the more you smoke, the higher the risk for health problems including cancers, heart disease and lung disease.

Tar levels in cigars are higher than cigarettes and because of their size, some large cigars can contain the equivalent of an entire pack of cigarettes, taking more than an hour to smoke. Cigars also contain high levels of nicotine, which is addictive.  According to National Cancer Institute, a single cigar can have as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes.

Men and women are smoking more cigars than a decade ago and in the United States alone, more than 13.7 billion cigars were smoked in 2011, according the the Centers for Disease Control, a 55 per cent rise from a 2000.

Cigar and pipe smokers who did not have a history of cigarette smoking were found to have a greater risk of oral, esophageal, pancreatic, laryngeal and lung cancers, according to a recent review of more than 22 studies published online in Biomed Central’s Public Health Journal.

While cigarette consumption has seen a decline during the same time period, cigar smoking has  more than doubled and is a considered a growing public health concern.  Cigar smoke contains higher levels of known carcinogens than cigarette smoke due to the fermentation process used in their manufacture.  They also are a growing source of indoor air pollution.

To ready the full study visit: http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-015-1617-5 .