Is it less harmful to smoke rolling tobacco than manufactured tobacco?

Many people who have joined smoking rolling tobacco in recent times. Above all, it is young people who have increased this type of tobacco consumption the most. They have basically done it for two reasons: they are convinced that it is cheaper for them and that it is less harmful to their health.

In today's article we are going to focus on the second question, although we will give enough information to draw conclusions about the first.

Is it less harmful to smoke rolling tobacco than to do the same with manufactured tobacco? Before answering this question, let's see what exactly is rolling tobacco and how it differs from manufactured tobacco.

• Related article: "9 great health benefits of quitting tobacco smoking"

What is rolling tobacco?

Rolling tobacco is essentially a tobacco that is sold loose, without being sold in the form of an already assembled cigarette. It is a tobacco that has been used forever, ever since western man discovered tobacco in America, but manufactured tobacco managed to take the market a few generations ago.

Throughout the twentieth century it was associated above all with the consumption of pipe tobacco, although in many places people continued to smoke rolling tobacco in the form of cigarettes. Preparing it also requires buying paper and nozzles to be able to assemble it. Generally, all this material is sold in bags by different specialized companies.

Why is it considered a different tobacco from manufactured tobacco?

At the beginning of the 19th century, the first manufactured and packaged paper cigarettes began to be distributed worldwide. Already during the twentieth century it was consolidated as the preferential form of consumers by far.

In essence, the fact that tobacco is sold loose or already in a prepared cigarette should not raise many questions. The fact that tobacco has one or another presentation should not be a reason to wonder if one is better than the other.

However, there are people who believe that rolling tobacco has fewer additives. They consider that this form of tobacco should be less subject to the processes that the tobacco industry uses to make conventional cigarettes.

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8 reasons why rolling tobacco isn't really a better option

As we have discussed, many people believe that rolling tobacco is a healthier way to smoke. There are different myths that circulate in society, but we are going to see that smoking rolling tobacco is no less harmful than smoking manufactured tobacco.

1. Rolling tobacco is not more natural

There is a widespread belief that rolling tobacco is less manipulated than manufactured tobacco. That it has not gone through that last production process makes many people think that it is more natural or there are even those who associate it with organic.

Nothing could be further from the truth, at least in theory. That it does not come inside a mounted cigarette does not mean that it does not undergo the same handling processes as manufactured tobacco. They can add additives so that it has better combustion, retains moisture, does not produce as much smoke or smells less, etc.

2. Waste paper is simply not healthier

Manufactured tobacco is generally made with white colored paper. This paper has additives so that the combustion is effective, and also allows it not to go out after a short time after taking a puff on the cigarette.

Many people believe that rolling tobacco paper is much better and that it does not contain chemicals. But we have no guarantee of this, unless the composition is specified on the package. It can continue to contain undesirable substances for our body.

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3. You don't always smoke less with rolling tobacco

Some smokers conclude with rolling tobacco they smoke less. Some say that they are lazy to roll them, or that the paper turns off more and smokes less. Some even say that they don't like to smoke rolling tobacco so much, so they end up smoking less.

While this is sometimes true, it is important not to cheat playing solitaire. Also, here are good reasons why smoking rolling tobacco can be more expensive at different levels.

4. Carbon monoxide concentrations in the blood are higher

Rolling tobacco has been scientifically proven to burn more paper. This causes more carbon monoxide to be emitted as a product of combustion. This substance passes into our respiratory system and blood, and complicates our respiratory and cardiovascular health.

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5. Nicotine dependence and its presence in the blood

People who smoke rolling tobacco have some substances in their blood for longer than manufactured tobacco smokers. One of these substances is cotinine, which is produced from the metabolism of nicotine.

6. You will not save yourself from cancer

Rolling tobacco smokers are not better protected against cancer. Statistical studies on cancer patients confirm that those who have smoked this type of tobacco have developed more cases of cancer of the lung, pharynx, larynx and mouth.

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7. You are going to have as much or more tar in your lungs

Comparing the composition of rolling tobacco and packet tobacco, it has been seen that the former has more tar. It also has more nicotine and produces more carbon monoxide, so it doesn't seem like a healthier option at first.

8. Your body oxidizes as much or the same as smoking conventional tobacco

Smoking rolling tobacco can lead to more stress and oxidation.. This is what some scientific studies point out when comparing the health effects of the two types of tobacco. There is no doubt that tobacco smoke makes us age and neither is a good option.

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Conclusion on whether one or the other type of tobacco is better

Starting to smoke rolling tobacco to smoke less or spend less money is a bad decision. We will not beat around the bush judging whether one is better than the other. There is no doubt that, if you want to get to smoke or spend less, there is only one valid solution: quit smoking.

Smoking tobacco is an addictive behavior that makes our anxiety go up and down throughout the days without us being able to do much else. Even if by smoking rolling tobacco we could smoke less and it was less harmful, we could be suffering from more anxiety.

Smoking a few cigarettes a week or so, using thinner or thicker paper,… these are not reasons why it is worth spending our energy. Scientific studies show that both rolled and manufactured tobacco develop a dependency that cannot be easily escaped.

Therefore, from La Guía Femenina we advocate for quitting tobacco as the only solution. And it is that self-deception can play very tricks on us. Despite temporarily convincing ourselves about some idea, in the end one always ends up reaching the same conclusion: tobacco, be it one or the other, will always harm us.

• It might interest you: "The 10 most common psychological disorders in adults"

Bibliographic references

• Carr, A. (1998). Quitting is easy, if you know how. Madrid: Espasa-Calp

• Goodman, J. (2005). Tobacco in History and Culture: An Encyclopedia. Detroit: Thomson Gale.

• Losardo, R.J. (2016). Smoking: addiction and diseases. A global and national challenge. Journal of the Argentine Medical Association, 129 (4), 36-38.