A Battle between Cigars and Cigarettes




The question on which one is more harmful a cigar or a cigarette is strongly debated. While some people believe one cigar contains as much tobacco as a whole pack of cigarettes and is therefore twenty times as harmful as one cigarette, the others claim there is nothing bad in cigars because the tobacco is processed differently, so it contains no addictive chemicals as cigarettes, besides, cigar smokers do not usually inhale the smoke.

In fact, it is hard to answer the question unambiguously. The way and the degree of smoking are different, so what is worse on one hand, does not do as bad on the other. We can definitely say, none of them is harmless and they affect human’s health as any other tobacco product despite of the way they are made. Cigars, cigarettes, chewing tobacco and even nicotine patches are bad for health, can cause addiction and lead to various types of cancer.

National Cancer Institute shows that health problems connected with smoking both cigarettes and cigars depend on how often and regular smoking occurs. As a rule cigarettes are smoked every day while cigars are an occasional event which would make cigarette smoking more harmful. However, it is important to mention that cigars contain more carcinogens (the particles causing cancer) because they are larger and the concentration of tobacco in them is higher.

As it has been mentioned above, many cigar protectors say they do not inhale the smoke, but just puff, so they do not breathe in the addictive nicotine. It is true that cigarette smokers breathe in the smoke which makes them more exposed to harmful effects of direct smoking, but… National Cancer Institute has proven with the researches that both cigar and cigarette smokers are vulnerable to carcinogens irrespective of the inhaling the smoke.

By holding a cigar or cigarette between lips the smoker breathes the smoke in, endangering tongue, throat, larynx and mouth to the smoke chemicals. Besides, saliva produced during this period is swallowed pushing the carcinogens deeper into the body. Studies have shown that both cigar and cigarette smokers swallow similar quantities of toxic materials, therefore being affected similarly by oral and esophageal cancers.

Except these two types there are other kinds of cancer which can occur in smokers. Laryngeal cancer is more possible for those who inhale the smoke. In this case the cigarette smokers are in greater danger than others because they inhale more and smoke more regularly.

As for lung cancer which is closely connected to smoking, National Cancer Institute states that the risk of it is the same for the ones who smoke one pack of cigarettes a day and the people who smoke five cigars a day.

Secondhand smoking is another aspect that is worthy attention. Both smokers and non-smokers in the same room where a cigar or a cigarette is lit are exposed to secondhand smoking. It is clear that cigars put out more toxic particles in the air than cigarettes do because of the way cigars are made. A lit cigar lets out more gas particles and carbon monoxide in particular. Environmental Protection Agency has tested the air in cigar bars and restaurants where every course in a meal is served with a cigar and many tables are smoking cigars. The results have shown that the level of toxins and carbon monoxide in one room where many people smoke exceeds human safety limits set by EPA.

So, it is obvious, both cigars and cigarettes are harmful and there is no advantage in any of them. However, there will always be those who give preference to one or another.

Andrew Johnson

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Posted on June 1, 2009 
Filed Under Facts on Smoking, Smoking and Health, Tobacco Research

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