• 1/25/2006
  • Maila, Phillipines
  • Sheila Crisostomo
  • Philstar.com

No matter the brand, each cigarette stick contains at least 43 chemicals that have been linked to cancer, the Department of Health (DOH) warned yesterday.

In a training manual for its “Healthy Lifestyle” program, the DOH said the 43 chemicals form part of over 4,000 toxic substances found in cigarettes.

Among these cancer-causing agents are nitrosamine, crysenes, cadnium, benzo(a)pyrene, polonium 210, nickel, P.A.H., dibenz acidine, B-napthylamine, urethane, N. nitrosonornicotine and toluidine, the manual said.

“Some smokers think that they reduce the harmful effects of smoking by using cigarettes with low-tar, low-nicotine or filter. This is not true,” the DOH emphasized.

The DOH maintained that smokers of low-nicotine cigarettes (those with less than 1.2 milligrams) tend to increase the number of sticks they consume to maintain their normal nicotine blood level.

“Smoking filter cigarettes does not also reduce cardiovascular risk. This is possibly due to a change in inhaling patterns. (Smokers) tend to inhale more and therefore the benefits of the filter are negated,” the DOH added.

Other toxic chemicals found in cigarettes are acetone, which is used to remove nail polish; acetic acid, which gives vinegar its sour taste; ammonia, arsenic which is sometimes used as a rat poison, butane and hexamine, used in lighter fluids; cadmium, found in rechargeable batteries; carbon monoxide, found in exhaust fumes; dieldrin, used in insecticides; ethanol, a kind of alcohol; and formaldehyde, used to preserve dead bodies.

With each puff, smokers also inhale hydrogen cyanide, used to kill death row convicts in gas chambers; methane; napthalene, a major component of moth balls; the gasoline additive nitrobenzene; stearic acid, found in candle wax; the industrial solvent toluene; and vinyl chloride, a major component of PVC pipes.

The DOH also said that cigarette smoke contains compounds that separate into gas and particulates. Three of these — tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide — are known to be harmful to the health of humans.

The manual showed that tar, the particulate matter left when water and nicotine are removed from cigarette smoke, contains hydrocarbons and other carcinogenic substances. Tar gets deposited in a smoker’s airways, paralyzing the cleaning mechanisms and damaging the air sacs.

Nicotine, on the other hand, causes release of epinephrine and norepinephrine, which puts smokers at risk of experiencing irregular heartbeat, increased heart rate or blood pressure, and possible stroke.

The manual also said carbon monoxide “reduces the oxygen-capacity of the blood because it competes with oxygen and has greater affinity for hemoglobin.”

The DOH said chewing tobacco is also associated with cancer, particularly oral cancer.

“The risk of developing this type of cancer is two to 11 times higher for tobacco chewers compared to those who do not have the habit. The risk increases as one chews tobacco over a longer period of time,” the DOH added.