What Do You Know About Smokeless Tobacco?
Smokeless tobacco may seem less harmful than smoking. But the health consequences of using smokeless tobacco include increased heart rate, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, and mouth sores.
1. Many people consider chewing tobacco a safe alternative to cigarettes because it's not smoked.
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In reality, it can cause serious long-term health problems. Tobacco in any form contains cancer-causing chemicals called nitrosamines, as well as formaldehyde; acetaldehyde; crotonaldehyde; hydrazine; arsenic; nickel; cadmium; benzopyrene; and polonium, which gives off radiation. Although smokeless tobacco doesn't cause lung cancer, it does cause cancers of the lip, tongue, cheek, and throat. Holding tobacco against your mouth tissues irritates them and can cause white patches called leukoplakia to form. These patches are considered to be precancerous.
2. Smokeless tobacco comes in two forms: snuff and chewing tobacco.
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Chewing tobacco is sold in leaf form, plug form, or twist form. It is placed in the side of the mouth, between the cheek and the gum. Snuff is powdered tobacco sold dry, moist, or in sachet bags. It is placed in the front of the mouth, between the lower lip and gum.
3. Half of the people who develop oral cancer from chewing tobacco die from it.
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The incidence of oral cancer generally increases with age and is more common in people 55 and older. Overall, the incidence rate for oral cancer has been gradually decreasing over the last two decades, according to the American Cancer Society. The death rates for oral cancer also have been declining, with an increase in survival rate with early detection and treatment.
4. Symptoms of oral cancer include sores on the inside of the mouth that don't heal; pain, numbness, or tenderness in the mouth or lips; and a lump, or small eroded area in the mouth.
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See your doctor or dentist immediately if you notice any of these signs.
5. Other health consequences of using smokeless tobacco include increased heart rate, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, and mouth sores.
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It may also increase the risk for blood clots.
6. Oral cancer that is localized is highly curable if caught early.
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It's disfiguring, however, because it can lead to surgical removal of the teeth, palate, jaw, and tongue. If you use smokeless tobacco, or have in the past, you should be on the lookout for some of these early signs of oral cancer: a mouth sore that doesn't heal; a lump or white patch in the mouth; a prolonged sore throat; difficulty in chewing; restricted movement of the tongue or jaws; and a feeling of something in the throat. Pain is rarely an early symptom. For this reason, all tobacco users need regular dental checkups.
7. A pinch of smokeless tobacco has about as much nicotine as one cigarette.
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Smokeless tobacco contains more nicotine than cigarettes. Holding an average-sized pinch or dip in the mouth for 30 minutes releases as much nicotine in the body as smoking three cigarettes. Also, although the nicotine in smokeless tobacco is absorbed more slowly than the nicotine in cigarettes, more of it is absorbed. Because more is absorbed, it stays in the bloodstream longer.
8. Because there's no smoke, chewing tobacco doesn't cause heart disease or strokes.
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In addition, people who use smokeless tobacco are more likely to take up smoking.
9. Chewing tobacco stains your teeth.
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It also can lead to tooth loss because it causes your gums to pull away from your teeth at the spot where the tobacco is held in the mouth. The sugar in the tobacco may also cause decay in exposed tooth roots.
10. To kick the chewing habit, talk to your doctor about using a nicotine patch.
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People who use a patch experience less severe withdrawal symptoms than those who quit without a patch. Your doctor also can help you develop a plan to quit.
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