Found In Tobacco

Monday 1 April 2019

• How Many Carcinogens Are Found In Tobacco
• Chemicals Found In Tobacco

The particles found in secondhand smoke are smaller than the particles found in firsthand smoke. Secondhand smoke can have higher concentration of dangerous chemicals than firsthand smoke. Secondhand smoke is inhaled less deeply than firsthand smoke. Breathing secondhand smoke is at least as dangerous as breathing firsthand smoke. Addictive drug found in tobacco leaves. 1 point Addictive drug Stimulant Nicotine Carcinogen Smoke exhaled from the lungs of a smoker; contains lower concentrations of carcinogens, nicotine and tar. 1 point Vaping Mainstreem smoke Smoke Sidestream smoke A change in brain chemistry, increase in respiration and heart rate, dulled taste buds, reduced appetite, bad.

Cigarettes contain a lot more than just paper and tobacco.

Hidden within a single cigarette is a potent cocktail of poisonous chemicals.

It’s common knowledge that cigarettes are harmful, but do you know exactly what makes them so damaging to our bodies?

We’ve explored some of the chemicals in cigarettes and how they impact our health.

Cancer causing chemicals

Of the 4000+ chemicals present in cigarette smoke, more than 60 are carcinogens – or substances that can cause cancer. Of these, 11 are known to cause cancer in humans and eight are associated with cancer in humans.

The carcinogens in cigarettes include:

• Benzene: also found in gasoline and crude oil, and therefore in motor vehicle exhaust fumes
• Heavy metals andmetalloid compounds: including arsenic (a strong poison), chromium (used to manufacture dye, paints, and alloys), cadmium (found in batteries), beryllium (used in nuclear reactors), and nickel (used to make stainless steel)
• 2-naphthylamine and 4-aminobiphenyl: also found in hair dye, paint, fungicides, and plastics
• Vinyl chloride: also used to make PVC, which is found in plastic products
• Ethylene oxide: a man-made chemical also used in the production of antifreeze and polyester
• Polonium-210: a highly radioactive element, and one of the world’s most deadly compounds
• Nitrosamines: including a collection of carcinogens that are only found in tobacco smoke

We often think of lung cancer when we think of smoking, but the damage doesn’t stop there. Tobacco is linked to at least 16 types of cancer, including cancers of the mouth, throat, bladder, stomach, bowel, and blood.

Toxic chemicals

Beyond cancer, smoking is linked to a vast range of other serious diseases and health conditions.

The toxic chemicals in cigarette smoke travel in our blood to our heart, brain, and every other organ and system in the body. That’s why smoking is associated with conditions as varied as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, lung disease, vision loss, dental issues, osteoporosis, erectile dysfunction, and reduced fertility.

Here are just some of the toxic chemicals found in cigarettes:

• Nicotine: a highly addictive and poisonous drug. It also causes the blood vessels to tighten, reducing blood flow and restricting the amount of oxygen and nutrients transported around the body.
• Carbon monoxide: also found incar exhaust fumes, thispoisonous gas takes the place of oxygen in your bloodstream.
• Formaldehyde: also used to preserve laboratory specimens, in embalming processes, and in the production of building materials, glue, pesticides, and fertilisers.
• Tar: refers to the solid particles that are created by burning tobacco. It builds up in the lungs and throat as a sticky, brown substance.
• Ammonia: also found in toilet cleaner and other household cleaning products.

Not to mention lead,acetone, hydrogen cyanide, toluene, phenol… the list is as long as it is terrifying!

Do filters make cigarettes less harmful?

No. Cigarettes with filters are just as harmful as those without filters.

Filters were originally added to cigarettes with the aim of reducing the amount of tar, toxins, and other particles from getting into the lungs. However, research has shown that they do not make cigarettes any less dangerous.

Most cigarettes in Australia have vented filters, or filters with tiny holes that allow more air to be drawn in with each puff. This mix of air and smoke can make it feel ‘easier’ on the throat. However, smokers may inhale more deeply to compensate for the aerating action of vented filters, leading to an increase in deadly cancers in the outer regions of the lungs.

On top of the countless health impacts of cigarettes, discarded cigarette filters (also known as cigarette butts) are damaging to the environment. Cigarette butts are the biggest contributor to litter in Australia, with a shocking 7 billion cigarette butts littered every year.

Are ‘light’ or ‘mild’ cigarettes better choices?

So-called ‘light’ or ‘mild’ cigarettes are simply other names for filtered cigarettes. These terms were found to be potentially misleading and deceptive, and are no longer used on cigarette products.

That’s because whether you smoke cigarettes with a stronger or weaker taste, the risk of smoking-related diseases is the same. Switching to ‘mild’ or weaker-tasting cigarettes doesn’t mean you’re inhaling fewer chemicals.

What about e-cigarettes?

Electronic cigarettes, e-cigars, vape pens, and personal vaporisers are all smoking products. E-cigarettes can contain many of the same toxic chemicals that are found in traditional cigarettes, including nicotine, formaldehyde, and nitrosamines. E-cigarettes that contain liquid nicotine are illegal in Queensland.

In short, they are not harmless.

What if I smoke rollies or shisha?

How Many Carcinogens Are Found In Tobacco

Shisha, hookah, waterpipes, cigars, pipes, and hand-rolled cigarettes or ‘rollies’ all contain toxic and cancer-causing chemicals.

They are no less harmful, and may in fact increase your exposure to toxic chemicals. Compared with smoking a cigarette, in an average waterpipe session you’ll inhale 2-3 times more nicotine, 25 times more tar, and up to 50 times more lead.

It doesn’t just affect the smoker – everyone suffers

You don’t have to be the smoker to experience the harmful consequences of smoking.

Cancer-causing and toxic chemicals are found in second-hand smoke, which is a combination of:

1. Mainstream smoke – exhaled by the smoker
2. Side-stream smoke – released from the tip of the cigarette

Second-hand smoke can cause cancer. People who have never smoked a cigarette can experience the devastating consequences of smoking, particularly with prolonged exposure in the home. It’s especially harmful to babies, children, and pregnant women.

That means quitting isn’t just good for you alone – it’s good for your family, friends, colleagues, and everyone around you.

It’s never too late to quit

Yes, there’s a lot of nasty stuff in cigarettes. But we’ve got good news – quitting can improve your health no matter how long you’ve been smoking. Within hours of your last cigarette, your body starts to repair.

You don’t have to go it alone. Check out our tips for quitting smoking successfully, or visit Quit HQ.

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Tobacco, common name of the plant Nicotiana tabacum and, to a limited extent, Aztec tobacco (N. rustica) and the cured leaf that is used, usually after aging and processing in various ways, for smoking, chewing, snuffing, and extraction of nicotine. Various other species in the genus Nicotiana are grown as ornamentals, known collectively as flowering tobaccos. This article deals with the farming of commercial tobacco from cultivation to curing and grading.

Cultivation

Though tobacco is tropical in origin, it is grown throughout the world. Cultivated tobacco (N. tabacum) requires a frost-free period of 100 to 130 days from date of transplanting to maturity in the field. Aztec tobacco (N. rustica), which is grown to some extent in India, Vietnam, and certain Transcaucasian countries, matures more quickly and is more potent than cultivated tobacco.

The prime requisite for successful tobacco culture is a supply of well-developed healthy seedlings that is available at the proper time for transplanting. Soil for a plant bed should be fertile and of good tilth and drainage; it must be protected from chilling winds and exposed to the sun. The soil is usually partially sterilized by burning or using chemicals such as methyl bromide (now illegal in many countries) to control plant diseases, weeds, insect pests, and nematodes. The soil must be finely pulverized and level so that the seed can be lightly covered with soil by rolling or trampling. Uniform distribution of seeds is important. In warm regions of the world, the germinating seedlings are produced outdoors in cold frames covered with thin cotton cloth or a thin mulch, such as chopped grass (used in particular in Zimbabwe), straw, or pine needles. Glass or plastic is used in colder regions, and close attention is given to watering and ventilation. After 8 to 10 weeks the seedlings are 10 to 18 cm (4 to 7 inches) in length and are ready for transplanting in the field. Transplanting machines are used extensively in some areas, but much of the world’s tobacco is planted by hand.

Spacing of plants in the field varies widely according to the type of tobacco. Orinoco strains, used for flue curing, are grown in rows 1.2 metres (4 feet) apart, with plants 50 to 60 cm (20 to 24 inches) apart in the row. Varieties in the Pryor group are grown to produce the dark air-cured and fire-cured types and are often planted in hills 1 metre (3.5 feet) apart. Burley and Maryland strains, used for the production of light air-cured tobaccos, may be planted 81 to 91 cm (32 to 36 inches) apart or closer. Broadleaf and seed-leaf strains, including the Havana seed, Cuban, and Sumatra varieties, are used for the production of cigars; they are grown in rows spaced 1 metre (3 feet) apart, with individual plants placed at a distance of 38 to 68 cm (15 to 27 inches) from each other. The variety grown for production of Perique is spaced the widest, with rows 1.5 metres (5 feet) apart and 91 to 107 cm (36 to 42 inches) between plants. Aromatic tobaccos, also used for cigars, are spaced in rows 38 to 60 cm (15 to 24 inches) apart with 8 to 20 cm (3 to 8 inches) between plants in the row.

Soil requirements vary widely with the type of tobacco grown, though well-drained soil with good aeration is generally desirable. Flue-cured, Maryland, cigar-binder, and wrapper types of tobacco are produced on sandy and sandy loam soil. Burley, dark air-cured, fire-cured, and cigar-filler types are grown on silt loam and clay loam soils, with clay subsoils. The need for fertilizer is determined by the type of tobacco, soil, and climate; nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are commonly applied as necessary to prevent symptoms of nutritional deficiency.

Chemicals Found In Tobacco

Large-leaf tobaccos are often topped—that is, the terminal growth is removed—when the plant has reached the desired size, usually at or shortly after flowering. The number of leaves remaining varies widely. Dark air-cured and fire-cured tobaccos may have 10 to 16 leaves, while Burley, flue-cured, Maryland, and cigar types may have 16 to 20 leaves. After topping, the suckers, or lateral shoots, are removed to increase leaf development, providing increased yields. The work may be done by hand, in which case it must be repeated regularly, or by application of sucker-suppressing chemicals. Aromatic tobacco culture differs from that of most of the large-leafed tobaccos in that the plants are rarely topped and preferably are grown on soils of low productivity.

Diseases and pests

Common diseases and pests are black root rot, Fusarium wilt, tobaccomosaic virus (TMV), bacterial leaf spot, downy mildew, black shank, broomrape, and witchweed. These may be controlled by sanitation, crop rotation, the use of fungicide and herbicide sprays and fumigants, and breeding of disease-resistant strains. Some resistant varieties of tobacco have been produced by blending desired characteristics from longflower tobacco (N. longiflora) and N. glutinosa, among others, with strains of commercial tobacco.

Common insect pests are green June beetle larvae, cutworms, and flea beetles in the plant bed and hornworms, grasshoppers, flea beetles, cutworms, budworms, and aphids in the field. The cigarette, or tobacco, beetle damages the stored leaf and sometimes the manufactured product. Insect pests are controlled on the growing crop by using pesticide sprays and dusts, on the stored product by fumigating and trapping. Biological control often is effective. Fumigation controls nematodes in the field.