Light cigarettes may not help smokers quit

Smokers who want to quit and think a good first step is to switch to light or low-tar cigarettes are making a big mistake. A study has found that those smokers instead have about a 50% lower chance of giving up smoking.

The research, published in the November issue of Tobacco Control, analyzed survey data from about 31,000 smokers who were asked whether they had switched to a milder or low-tar brand of cigarettes and the reasons for the switch. They were queried about whether they had tried to give up smoking and if they could currently call themselves nonsmokers. Those who switched brands were 58% more likely to have attempted to give up smoking than those who stayed with one brand but were 60% less likely to successfully quit.

It's not clear why switching to light cigarettes backfires, said the authors, from the University of Pittsburgh. Switchers may have changed their behavior in ways that made quitting harder. The switchers could also be the group of people who have the most trouble quitting. Or it's possible these people decided that smoking light cigarettes was a good alternative to quitting.

Low-tar cigarettes deliver amounts of tar, nicotine and other substances that are comparable with regular cigarettes, the authors said. These so-called light products make up 84% of the market.

"Previous research has shown that smokers interpret the term 'light' to mean less toxic, an association that manufacturers have sought to exploit in advertising," the lead author of the study, Dr. Hilary Tindle, said in a news release.

People who want information on the proven, best methods for quitting can peruse the smoking cessation resources page at the National Institutes of Health.

- Shari Roan

Photo credit: Will Wintercross  /  Bloomberg News

Comments

[Colbert Fort]

There is a theory that people who smoke low tar cigarettes draw the smoke deeper into their lungs in an attempt to get the equivalent 'hit' they got from stronger cigarettes.

Drawing the smoke deeper into one's lungs is, supposedly, worse for the body. Therfore higher tar cigarettes or roll-ups may, in fact, do slightly less damage than low tar cigarettes.

But they'll all get you in the end.

[enzo]

Cold turkey. The only way. Nicotine is toxic.

[AdoAnnie]

Why are you posting prehistoric "news"? This was common knowledge in the '70's when I was trying to quit for the 3rd and 4th time. "[N]ot clear why switching to light cigarettes backfires," grow a brain! With "lite" cigarettes you have to smoke more of them to get the same nicotine buzz. Just ask an ex cigarette smoker. Find something that is actually news to report on or admit that this is old, old rehash of already known news.

[undercardbum]

This is ancient history -- and common sense.