Forms of Tobacco

Cigars
  • Most cigars are composed primarily of a single type of tobacco (air-cured and fermented), and they have a tobacco wrapper. They can vary in size and shape and contain between 1 gram and 20 grams of tobacco.
  • Compared to cigarettes, cigars have a higher level of cancer-causing substances, more tar, and higher level of toxins.
  • A single cigar can potentially provide as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes; a cigar smoker can get nicotine by two routes: by inhalation into the lungs and by absorption through the lining of the mouth.
Cigarettes
  • Cigarette smoking harms nearly every organ of the body, causes many diseases, and reduces the health of smokers in general
  • Cigarette smoking causes more than 480,000 deaths each year in the United States. This is nearly one in five deaths.
E-cigarettes
  • Electronic cigarettes are a new form of tobacco that still has largely unknown public and individual health effects.
  • E-cigarettes are entirely unregulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
  • Since e-cigarettes are not regulated by the FDA there is no standardized and approved way to make an e-cigarette.
  • E-cigarettes also contain nicotine, which means that you can become addicted just as easily as regular tobacco products.
Hookahs
  • Hookah, while seen as a healthier alternative, is actually shown to be as unhealthy as cigarettes and other tobacco products.
  • Hookah smoke contains higher levels of tar, carbon monoxide, and carcinogens than cigarettes.
  • Hookah has also shown to have the same amount of nicotine as cigarettes; possibly leading to tobacco dependence.
  • As with cigarette smoking, hookah smoking is linked to lung and oral cancers, heart disease and other serious illnesses.
Smokeless
  • Similar to e-cigarettes; there is a false opinion that smokeless tobacco is healthier or safer way to use tobacco.
  • Smokeless tobacco such as dip, chew, or snuff have been linked to cancer in the mouth, throat. It also has been linked to similar health problems caused by cigarettes and other forms of tobacco.
  • Smokeless tobacco also has been shown to be as addictive as cigarettes since they have nicotine in them.