Ok among smokers i know there is this belief that menthol cigarettes are worse than normal ones,the magnitude varies from twice as bad to four times etc.
None can tell me where this info came from,its just common knowledge apparently.
Googling hasn’t been very fruitful,except to say some menthol brands also have the highest nicotene levels.
I know menthol is in everything from cough drops to breath mints,to toothpaste,so does it become harmful when inhaled?
Is there any truth to it?
Should i start brushing with baking soda and toss the listerine?:eek:
I would imagine that menthol cigarettes are exactly the same as non-menthol in terms of deadliness.
Menthol was originally added to make smoking more palatable to female smokers by cutting down on the harshness of the smoke by falsely creating an impression of “minty coolness.”
I don’t think the addition of menthol has any effect at all on the toxicity, especially considering that burning tobacco smoke has an alphabet soup of toxins already–one more just doesn’t make any difference.
That was basically my thought on it,that even if the menthol was detrimental its not the biggest thing in the cig to be worried about.
But does anyone know where this rumor came from?
Anyone else heard it?
I had heard that the menthol crystalizes in your lungs, that’s why it’s more deadly. Apparently, they are worse for you, but not because of that reason.
http://www.onyx-group.com/Factsheet3.htm
It seems you tend to inhale deeper because of the cooling sensation, and the menthol brands tend to contain higher carcinogen levels.
I had an exroomie who claimed that it was some type of fiberglass that got into the lungs as a result. So he’d joke that he was going to die hapily with a Porshe in his lungs. I always took it as B.S. As I figgure what the hell would fiberglass be doing in a Menthol cigarette? If it was the filter as he claimed, Why would the filter be any different than in nonmenthols? And if it was the menthol, What the hell is fiberglass doing in it?
Yea, tobacco companies put lots of stuff in the things to keep us puffing, But get real.
{D.Leary} The heroin is there, only us good smokers know that!{/D. Leary}
There was a study done that claims that people who smoke Menthol ciggs actually puff harder on their butts then regular cigg smokers. This causes more damage because they are taking in more toxins than the people who smaoke the regular cancer sticks. Crazy study I admit but, it was recently shown on local NYC news program!
When I was 19 (1961) I worked for a wholesale pharmaceutical company making deliveries to pharmacies. One of my stops was the City of Hope in Duarte, CA. Over the door of an oncology ward was a sign that said (as I remember it) “If you smoke cigarettes, we’ll probably be seeing you here. If you smoke menthol cigarettes, we’ll certainly be seeing you here.” No other explanation, but I figured if the experts noticed a difference there must be something to it.
Yeah, I was smoking menthols at the time. I quit the menthols, but it took me until 1984 to quit smoking entirely. As the saying goes, “Too soon old, too late smart.”