Chew and snuff: Deadly alternatives to cigarettes

Aware of the harmful effects of smoking cigarettes, some people think of smokeless tobacco as a healthier alternative. But it's just as, if not more, deadly than smoking.

Chewing and dipping

Two major forms of smokeless tobacco are chewing tobacco and snuff.

Chewing tobacco is usually packaged in a pouch as leaf tobacco or in brick form as plug tobacco. People who "chew" break off a piece of leaf or plug tobacco, then chew or hold it in the mouth between the gum and cheek.
Snuff is a powdered tobacco often packaged in cans. People who "dip" take a pinch of snuff out of the tin and put it between the gum and lower lip, or the gum and cheek.

When you chew or dip tobacco, the tobacco mixes with your saliva. Nicotine and other chemicals are absorbed through the lining of your mouth and enter your bloodstream. With regular use, an addiction to nicotine develops, and health declines.

Serious health risks

Those who use smokeless tobacco encounter serious health risks.

Nicotine is a potent drug that can cause high blood pressure and high cholesterol. It also tampers with your heart rate.
The tobacco extract can increase the growth of the bacteria in the mouth. This can make your gums so inflamed that they swell and bleed. It also discolors your teeth and gives you cavities or tooth decay.
Smokeless tobacco also diminishes your sense of taste and smell.
Swallowed tobacco juices can raise the acids in your stomach, causing peptic ulcers.
Children born to women who use smokeless tobacco often have problems like low birth weight. One study showed that pregnant women who use chew or snuff were three times more likely to have stillbirths than non-users.

Mouth and throat cancer

Besides nicotine, chewing tobacco contains many chemicals and metals that cause cancer. The metals include lead and cadmium, which are used in car batteries.

Smokeless tobacco can lead to cancers of the mouth (including the lip, tongue and cheek) and throat. Cancers most frequently occur at the site where the tobacco is held in the mouth, but have also been linked to cancer of the nasal cavity, esophagus, stomach and pancreas.

If you use smokeless tobacco, frequently check your mouth for...

a soreness or swelling that doesn't go away
a lump or thickening anywhere in the mouth or throat
a sore in the mouth that bleeds easily and does not heal
a red or white patch that doesn't go away

Such symptoms could mean you have oral cancer and should be evaluated by a doctor. Other warning signs that require medical attention include trouble chewing, swallowing or moving the tongue or jaw.

Quitting the habit

Ending a chew or snuff habit is a lot like quitting smoking. It's difficult and may take many tries.

Some studies have shown that it's harder to quit using chew or snuff than it is to stop smoking. The fact that smokeless tobacco sends more nicotine into your bloodstream than cigarettes do doesn't help either.

Discuss quitting techniques with your doctor and ask him or her to recommend a tobacco cessation support program.

Following these tips might also help:

Start cutting back on how much you chew or dip.
Select a quit date and get rid of all your tobacco before then.
Keep something with you to put in your mouth when a craving strikes. Examples of good tobacco alternatives include hard candy, sugarless gum, jerky, non-tobacco mint leaf snuff, sunflower seeds or toothpicks.
Do something else when you want to chew or dip. For instance, take a walk, call a friend, lift weights, watch a movie, ride your bike or go shopping.