Smokeless tobacco addictive

Letter to the Editor
Albany Times Union
First published in print: Thursday, June 4, 2009

In the world of tobacco-free advocacy, good news is inevitably followed by bad as the tobacco industry repositions itself to continue to earn profits in the face of tobacco use declines.

Here's the good news: More people are quitting smoking or attempting to quit, a 2007 report on New York's tobacco control program found. A significant majority of Capital Region residents are limiting their exposure to toxic secondhand smoke by prohibiting smoking in their homes and cars, including 43 percent and 39 percent of current smokers, respectively, our 2007 community survey found. Seven Capital Region towns have made their parks and outdoor recreation areas smoke-free.

What does that mean for the tobacco industry? As reported in the May 19 article, "Altria cites smokeless items as key for business," that appeared on timesunion.com, it means fewer cigarettes sold. But not fewer profits if Altria can help it. Altria is building a base for smokeless tobacco products -- snuff, chewing tobacco and snus-- as addictive and harmful as cigarettes, but without the smoke.

So, maybe we'll see less lung cancer resulting from tobacco use, but we'll likely see more cancer of the mouth, cheeks, gums, stomach, esophagus and bladder. And nicotine addiction is addiction in whatever form, so heart disease will persist as a result.

If you use tobacco, do yourself and your loved ones a favor and call (866) NY-QUITS or (866) 697-8487. For more information, visit http://www.SmokeFreeCapital.org.

Theresa Zubretsky
Project Coordinator
Capital District Tobacco-Free Coalition
Albany