Cigar smoking facts

  Are cigars addictive? Do cigars cause cancer? Do cigars cause other health problems?

Are Cigars Addictive?

Are Cigars Addictive?
While the reasons people smoke cigars are varied, the fact is, like cigarettes, cigars can become addictive. Nicotine is the substance in tobacco that causes addiction. Most cigars have as much nicotine as several cigarettes. One cigarette has about 1 to 2 milligrams of nicotine, while many popular brands of cigars will contain between 100 and 200 milligrams, or as even many as 444 milligrams of nicotine.

If cigar smokers inhale, nicotine is absorbed as rapidly as it is with cigarettes. For those who do not inhale, it is absorbed more slowly through the lining of the mouth. The smoke of cigars dissolves more easily in saliva than cigarette smoke. Therefore, the desired dose of nicotine can be achieved without the need to inhale the smoke into the lungs. People who use smokeless tobacco absorb nicotine the same way. Both inhaled and non-inhaled nicotine are highly addictive.

Do Cigars Cause Cancer?

Cigar smoking increases your risk of death from several cancers, including cancer of the lung, oral cavity (lip, tongue, mouth, throat), esophagus (the tube connecting the mouth to the stomach), and larynx (voice box). Studies have shown that male cigar smokers are 7 to 10 times more likely to die from oral and laryngeal cancers than nonsmokers. In addition, when saliva containing cigar smoke chemicals is swallowed, the esophagus is exposed to carcinogens. The death rate from esophageal cancer is several times higher in male cigar smokers than in males who have never smoked. If you inhale, cigar smoking appears to be linked to death from cancer of the pancreas and bladder, as well.

How and how much you smoke is important. Cigar smokers may spend up to an hour smoking a single large cigar that can contain as much tobacco as a pack of cigarettes. Smoking more cigars each day or inhaling cigar smoke leads to more exposure and higher risks. Studies have shown your risk of death is higher if you smoke 3 or more cigars than if you smoke 2 or fewer cigars a day. The health risks associated with occasional cigar smoking (less than daily) are not known.

Does Inhaling Affect the Risk of Cancer?
While almost all cigarette smokers inhale, most cigar smokers do not. This may be because cigar smoke is generally more irritating. An emerging trend among cigar companies is to change the fermenting process of their products to make them easier to inhale. This same curing and fermenting process further enhances the flavor but also increases the levels of harmful ingredients.

For those who do not inhale, tobacco smoke does not reach the lungs in the same quantity as it does in cigarette smokers. Therefore, the risk of death from lung cancer is not as high as it is for cigarette smokers, but is still several times higher than the risk for nonsmokers.

Cigar smokers with a history of cigarette smoking are more likely to inhale. According to a recent American Cancer Society study, those who inhale have an increased risk of death from lung cancer, 11 times greater than that of nonsmokers.

The study also found that for those who inhale, the risks are increased for other types of cancer. Compared to nonsmokers, cigar smokers who inhale deeply are 6 times more likely to die from oral cancer and 39 times more likely to die from cancer of the larynx. They also face more than twice the risk of death from pancreatic cancer and more than 3 times the risk of death from bladder cancer compared to nonsmokers.

Do Cigars Cause Other Health Problems?

Cigarette smoking is known to increase the risk of lung diseases such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Cigarette smokers have twice the risk of dying of heart attacks as do nonsmokers. And smoking is a major risk factor for peripheral vascular disease, a narrowing of the blood vessels that move blood through the arms and legs.

While the link is not quite as strong as with cigarette smoking, cigar smoking (especially for people who inhale) increases the risk of heart disease and lung diseases such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis.

At this time there are no studies that conclusively show a link between cigar smoking and either peripheral vascular disease or stroke. However, a recent study found cigar smoking, as well as cigarette smoking, is linked to erectile dysfunction in men (the inability to achieve erection).

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