Tobacco Facts

Spit Tobacco

Chewing tobacco cans are seen here displayed in bright, candy like colouring. They are displayed in such a way that limits exposure to the warning label.Chewing tobacco is advertized in colourful packaging with flavours, such as peach, cherry and wild berry that appeal to youth.

Spit tobacco comes in two main forms; chew tobacco (like plug and twist) is in a leafy form that is rolled into a wad and chewed and snuff which is finely ground, moist tobacco, which is usually placed in the bottom lip and gum. Moist snuff is by far the most popular form of chewing tobacco. The most popular brands of moist tobacco are Skoal and Copenhagen which sell their products in flavours like peach, cherry, wild berry, mint, green apple and wintergreen. Although these flavours make them sound harmless these products contain over 3000 chemicals, at least 28 of which are known human carcinogens.

Spit tobacco is made of tobacco, nicotine, chemicals, sweeteners, salts and abrasives (abrasives are useful in cutting your gums so the nicotine can enter directly into your blood stream! Yum!) One "pinch" or "dip" of chewing tobacco between your gums for 30 minutes can release the same amount of nicotine as smoking three to four cigarettes! Chewing tobacco can cause cancer of the mouth and throat, leukoplakia (hairy tongue), mouth sores, bad breath, permanent gum recession and excessive drooling. Cancer of the mouth and throat are the most common and often result in death or disfiguring operations.

Spit tobacco in its multiple forms is expensive. Tobacco Industries are looking for the Bottom Line: your money. They don’t care about who you are, where you live, where you work or your health. They are after your money. Some spit tobacco can sell at retail for over $10! Think of all the money you could save yourself by quitting.

Spit tobacco use is higher in the Prairies than in the rest of Canada. Athletes, Aboriginal people and rural males are the groups who use spit tobacco the most. Most spit tobacco users start around age nine or ten. Northwestern Ontario also has a high rate of spit tobacco use.

Harm Reduction? Hardly! Using spit tobacco obviously emits no smoke, which is why Big Tobacco has so lovingly termed it as Smokeless tobacco. Their advertisements for chew suggest that if you aren’t harming other people then you can’t be harming yourself, right? Wrong. Spit tobacco is just as dangerous if not more so than cigarettes. And the effects of using can become evident in as little as 5 years after regular use. Because users start so young, it’s possible to be diagnosed with cancer by 16-17 years old! For real life stories check out Gruen von Behren's story.



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