What Are You Smoking?

You may have learned about it in D.A.R.E. classes in elementary school, you parents may have warned you, but today when you’re puffing on a cigarette, the last thing you’re thinking about is exactly what is in it. And that’s exactly what tobacco companies want. They don’t want you to think about everything you’re inhaling, because if you knew, you might not want to buy their product. Ammonia, methanol, arsenic, formaldehyde? A list of 599 additives that included these ingredients was released by the United States in 1994, but it’s been more than a decade since then, and tobacco companies aren’t required to let people know what they’re putting in their products.


In June, this will change, as the Food and Drug Administration is requiring tobacco companies to release their formulas for the first time. The FDA was granted new powers in regulating tobacco by a law passed last June, and this requirement is the first step. Matt Meyers, president of Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, told MSNBC that some tobacco companies have voluntarily listed ingredients online, but they are not as exact and accurate as what they must tell the FDA. “Until now, the tobacco companies were free to manipulate their product in ways to maximize sales, no matter the impact on the number of people who died or became addicted,” he said. “The manner of disclosure previously made it impossible for the government to make any meaningful assessments.”

Allowing the FDA and the public to have a greater grasp on what exactly goes into cigarettes may not cause current smokers to quit, but it could deter potential smokers, and could lead to cigarettes being less appetizing. The FDA may be able to use this information to stop the manipulation of cigarette ingredients so that they are less addictive. The first step was stopping the sales of flavored cigarettes. The fact that cigarettes are bad for you is far from a secret, but more openness about the specific ingredients can only help. The current list of cigarette ingredients are approved by the FDA for human consumption, but it doesn’t take into account the chemicals that are created when cigarettes are burned.


According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, about 443,000 people in the United States die each year from diseases related to smoking. There are many reasons not to smoke, and many health benefits that come from quitting and you can start today. If you’re not a smoker, and you want to work to help others quit, you can start with people you know who are smokers, and write to your government officials about smoking legislation. In my home state of Michigan, smoking has been banned in all bars and restaurants. You can look up your own state’s smoking laws and encourage smoking bans if you don’t already have them.