‘Light’ Cigarettes Don’t Cut Health Risks, Study Says
The National Cancer Institute said Tuesday that popular low-tar and “light” cigarettes are worthless as a way to reduce health risks to smokers.
Contrary to what many smokers believe, low-tar brands do not offer any significant protection against developing lung cancer, emphysema or other ailments associated with smoking regular cigarettes, the institute said.
If smokers take the finding to heart, the study could seriously undermine marketing efforts by cigarette makers. Over the years, they have offered a growing number of low-tar and low-nicotine products as alternatives to smokers who might otherwise quit. The light cigarettes have been a central marketing strategy of the tobacco industry amid mounting medical evidence of the health hazards of smoking.
More than 80% of cigarettes sold in the U.S. are low-tar brands, and those who smoke them are likely to inhale more deeply, puff more frequently and smoke more cigarettes in an effort to get the taste that accompanies the high-tar brands, according to the institute’s analysis of 50 years of scientific studies and literature.
The institute’s study is an effort to provide a definitive review of the evidence about the efficacy of low-tar cigarettes. It summarizes the scientific knowledge developed since the industry began producing brands with reduced tar content. The burning of tobacco produces tar, a complex of chemicals that contain cancer-causing agents.
The summary verdict from the institute is that, although the industry has slashed the tar component, smokers have gained no additional protection from disease.
The evidence “does not indicate a benefit to public health from changes in cigarette design and manufacturing over the last 50 years,” the report said.
A group of public health organizations, discussing the report at a news conference, called on the tobacco industry to stop using the terms “light,” “ultra-light” and “low-tar.” Because this is unlikely, the groups want Congress to give the Food and Drug Administration the power to regulate tobacco products and ban the marketing terms.
Tobacco companies said the descriptive phrases are worthwhile for consumers. “They provide useful points of comparison” for smokers, said Mary Carnovale, spokeswoman for Philip Morris U.S.A., the largest cigarette producer.
“We have never claimed that low-tar cigarettes are any safer than any other cigarettes, and we agree that the only sure way to reduce the risks of smoking is to quit,” said Seth Moskowitz, a spokesman for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco.
The conclusion that smokers are no better off than they were 50 years ago defies common sense, Moskowitz said. A half-century ago, he said, cigarettes were unfiltered and, compared with today’s brands, were loaded with tar and nicotine.
A half-century ago, the typical cigarette had more than 30 milligrams of tar. Today, the average is about 12 milligrams, Moskowitz said, with a range from less than 7 milligrams to more than 14 milligrams.
However, the study said smokers compensate for the reduced tar in cigarettes by inhaling more deeply in search of the pleasurable sensation associated with the nicotine delivered by smoking. When people switch to the lower-tar brands, the study said, “there appears to be complete compensation for nicotine delivery, reflecting more intensive smoking of lower-yield cigarettes.”
Smokers also hold low-tar cigarettes differently in their mouth, covering the vent holes in the filter paper with their lips so that they get more tar and nicotine per puff, said Matthew L. Myers, director of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
“The tobacco industry responded to the public health concerns of the 1950s and 1960s by producing products the American public believed were safer in order to keep people smoking,” said Myers, who was joined at the news conference by representatives of the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Assn. and the American Lung Assn.
“More than half of all smokers say they want to quit, and all this evidence shows that these products were targeted to people concerned about their health and considering switching,” he said. About 40 million of the nation’s 45 million smokers favor low-tar brands, Myers said.
Cigarette companies said they began making the low-tar, low-nicotine brands in response to public health concerns and the urging of government health officials.
“We agree [low-tar cigarettes] might not be safer than full-flavored cigarettes, but you can’t rule it out,” said Sharon Boyse, director of applied research for Brown & Williamson Tobacco Co. Despite the cancer institute’s report, she said, the evidence is inconclusive.
“It is wrong to give the impression that we know for sure there are no benefits in smoking low-tar cigarettes.”
