The Harmful Effect of Smokeless Tobacco




While it is known that smoking damages people’s health, many believe that smokeless or chewing tobacco is not as bad. One does not have to smoke it, inhale bad particles or swallow the chemicals; however, it still affects the body in the same way as cigarettes.

Smokeless tobacco comes in two forms: snuff and chewing tobacco. Snuff is a fine-grain tobacco that is packed in little pouches which should be “dipped” between the lower lip and gum. Chewing tobacco represents bigger pieces of leaves which have to be “pinched” between gum and cheek. Regardless of a kind of tobacco, it should stay in mouth for a while where it softens and starts making juices. The user sucks this juice and spits out every few seconds to get rid of the saliva that is building up. This process releases nicotine which is absorbed through the tissues in the mouth.

According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention about 12 to 14 million Americans chew tobacco. One third of them are under the age of 21. For those who think that smokeless tobacco does not cause addiction, it will be interesting to know that more than half of the tobacco chewers started the habit when they were 13 years old. With time the users need to increase the doses of nicotine to receive the same effect, this is why they have to move from one brand to the other that has stronger concentration of the chemical.

There are many negative sides of tobacco chewing. It would be simple to say that it just kills those who use it, but simple words like these do not usually impress the users. Well, the results of tobacco chewing can be as little as bad breath and yellow teeth. About 70 percent of chewers have mouth sores. With time, if one wants to keep the habit it develops in more serious damage: cracking and bleeding gums and lips, receding gums which will no longer be strong to hold teeth and they will fall out, and common smoker’s symptoms like increased and irregular heart rate, high blood pressure, and risk of heart attack. The worst end of this habit is cancer.

Although smokers are most likely to get lung cancer, the users of smokeless tobacco tend to get mouth and throat cancers. Every year 30,000 Americans find out they have this disease and only half of them actually live more than 5 years with it. Oral or mouth cancer usually affects lips, tongue, floor of the mouth, roof of the mouth, cheeks or gums. One famous baseball player had it developed so severely due to the tobacco chewing habit that the doctors had to take his jawbone, right cheekbone, a lot of teeth, gum line and taste buds in order to give him a few more years to live.

Mouth and throat cancers are not all. The scientific researches show that the use of smokeless tobacco can lead to stomach, esophagus and bladder cancers.

It is very important to realize the harmful effect of tobacco chewing in the early stages before it brought significant damage to health. The same as with smoking there are organizations that help to quit, if the habit is strong and the user cannot do it on his/her own. It is always good to have supporters who understand the problem and encourage quitting. Specialists could advise the best choice of replacement therapy such as nicotine gum or patch. There are also some tobacco-free substitutes which could be useful: mint-leaf snuff, beef jerky, sugarless gum, hard candy, dried fruit, etc.

It is hard to give up the habit from the first try, especially without supporters. If it happened, one should not give up that easily and start all over again. Healthy future is the primary goal here that should be achieved no matter what.

Thomas Neal

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Posted on May 22, 2009 
Filed Under Tobacco Research

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