Light and Menthol Cigarettes

You may think that "light" cigarettes are less harmful than regular ones. More women than men smoke these brands, mostly due to advertising targeted to women. But they're not better. They put smokers at the same risk for health problems just as regular ones do. Some cigarette packs say that light cigarettes have lower tar and nicotine. Don't let these claims fool you. Cigarette makers use smoking machines to figure out the amount of tar and nicotine in the cigarettes. These machines "smoke" every brand of cigarettes the same way. But people don't smoke cigarettes the same way machines do. People may inhale more deeply, take longer or more frequent puffs, or smoke extra cigarettes to satisfy their nicotine craving. Smokers then inhale more tar, nicotine, and other chemicals than the smoking machine measures.

Cigarette makers also put tiny holes in the filters of light cigarettes to dilute the smoke with air. But many smokers block the holes with their fingers or lips, and it's the same as smoking regular cigarettes.

Cigarette makers can also make the paper wrapped around the tobacco of light cigarettes burn faster. This is so the smoking machines get in fewer puffs before the cigarettes burn down. The result is that the machine measures less tar and nicotine in the smoke of the cigarette. The bottom line is there is no such thing as a safe cigarette. Quitting for good is the only proven way to reduce your risk of smoking-related problems.

Menthol brands of cigarettes are not safer and can be more dangerous. People who smoke menthol brands can inhale more deeply and take longer puffs than smokers of non-menthol brands.