Maude and Alfred Lane Family Reunion at
Crooked River Ranch, Oregon
There is a get-together at the Sandbagger Saloon and Restaurant
Aug. 14 (Friday), 4-9 p.m.
Family BBQ
at Crooked River Ranch’s MacPherson Park
Aug. 15 (Saturday) • 2 p.m.to sunset
Bring your favorite beverages
BBQ will be provided. Side dishes welcome!
Please RSVP/call Linda & Greg Merrill for info at
(home) 541-548-2452, (cell) 541-598-6683 or
crookedwillowm@gmail.com
Lodging info and RV/camping info available
Reserve early!
I have reserved a block of tee times, so if you want to
play golf on the morning of the 15 th , let us know.
See you soon!
Low-Yield Cigarettes
By the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention; brought to you by the Tribal
Tobacco Prevention & Education Program
After the landmark 1964 Surgeon
General’s Report on the health conse-
quences of smoking, cigarette manufac-
turers began heavily marketing cigarettes
labeled “light,” “low,” and “mild” (or
similar descriptors). 1
Cigarettes with “light/low/mild”
labels delivered less tar or nicotine in
standardized machine measurements. 1,2
They were often referred to as “potentially
reduced-exposure products,” and adver-
tisements implied that they were safer
than regular or “full-flavor” cigarettes. 1,2
However, due to passage of the Fam-
ily Smoking Prevention and Tobacco
Control Act in 2009, manufacturers are
now prohibited from manufacturing for
sale or distribution any tobacco products
for which the label, labeling or advertising
contains the descriptors “light,” “low,” or
“mild” or any similar descriptors. 3
The tar yields in cigarettes can be
measured on standardized smoking
machines. 1 Examination of tar yields and
health risks did not provide evidence that
low-yield cigarettes are less harmful to
health than regular cigarettes. 1
There is no risk-free level of expo-
sure to tobacco smoke and there is no
safe tobacco product. 4
Cigarette descriptors and design
Labels with descriptors, such as
“light,” “low,” or “mild” can no longer
be used. 3
In the past, the tobacco industry
categorized low-yield cigarettes using
measurements of tar on standardized
smoking machines. 1
•
Siletz News
•
The following cigarette design
changes made over the past
decades affected the tar and nicotine
measurements: 1,2,4
•
•
Overview
12
Cigarette brands that yielded approxi-
mately 1-6 milligrams (mg) of tar
were historically called “ultra light.”
Those with approximately 6-15 mg
of tar were called “light.”
Brands yielding more than 15 mg of tar
were called “regular” or “full flavor.”
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Addition of different size and density
filters
Ventilation holes in the cigarettes
to bring in air and dilute the smoke
measured
Chemical additives in the paper and/
or tobacco
Tobacco (i.e., using different types,
blends and curing methods)
No strong scientific evidence exists
indicating that changes in cigarette
design have resulted in a decrease in the
diseases caused by smoking cigarettes.
•
•
•
•
Many smokers block the ventilation
holes, thus inhaling more tar and
nicotine than measured by machines.
Many smokers inhale longer, harder
and more frequently when smok-
ing low-yield cigarettes to get more
nicotine.
January 2015
Many smokers consider smoking
low-yield cigarettes, menthol ciga-
rettes or additive-free cigarettes to
be safer than smoking regular ciga-
rettes, even though no strong scien-
tific evidence exists to substantiate
these beliefs. 1,2,5
Many smokers may have switched to
low-yield brands instead of quitting;
smokers may be misled by the implied
promise of reduced toxicity underly-
ing the marketing of such brands. 1,5,6
Information on sales of U.S. cigarettes
indicates that there were decreases in
tar and nicotine from 38 mg of tar and
2.7 mg of nicotine in 1954 to 12 mg of
tar and 0.95 mg of nicotine in 1993.
Tar and nicotine levels have remained
stable since then. 4
Health risks of smoking
•
Compensatory smoking
Most smokers are addicted to
nicotine and consequently may com-
pensate when smoking low-yield
cigarettes in order to take in more
nicotine than estimated by a smoking
machine. 1,5,6,7
people who would otherwise quit
using tobacco altogether. 4
References
1.
Smokers who use low-yield
cigarettes
Changes in cigarette design have
not made cigarettes safe. 1,5
•
Smokers may get as much or more
tar and nicotine from cigarettes with
low-yield ratings as from regular
cigarettes because of the ways they
compensate when smoking them.
•
•
The evidence indicates that chang-
ing cigarette designs over the last
five decades, including filtered, low-
tar and “light” variations, have not
reduced overall disease risk among
smokers and may have hindered pre-
vention and cessation efforts. 4
There is insufficient evidence to
determine whether novel tobacco
products reduce individual and popu-
lation health risks. 4
The overall health of the public could
be harmed if the introduction of novel
tobacco products encourages tobacco
use among people who would oth-
erwise be unlikely to use a tobacco
product or delays cessation among
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
National Cancer Institute. Risks Associated
with Smoking Cigarettes with Low Machine-
Measured Yields of Tar and Nicotine. Smok-
ing and Tobacco Control Monograph 13.
Bethesda: U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, National Institutes of
Health, National Cancer Institute, 2001
[accessed 2013 June 11]
Institute of Medicine. Clearing the Smoke:
Assessing the Science Base for Tobacco Harm
Prevention. Washington: National Academy
Press, 2001 [accessed 2013 June 11]
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Guidance
for Industry and FDA Staff: Use of “Light,”
“Mild,” “Low,” or Similar Descriptors in the
Label, Labeling, or Advertising of Tobacco
Products. Rockville (MD): U.S. Food and
Drug Administration, Center for Tobacco
Products, 2010 [accessed 2013 June 11]
U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services. How Tobacco Smoke Causes Dis-
ease: The Biology and Behavioral Basis for
Smoking-Attributable Disease. A Report of
the Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Depart-
ment of Health and Human Services, Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, National
Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and
Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and
Health, 2010 [accessed 2013 June 11]
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Light and
Low Tar Fact Sheets. [PDF–180.59 KB]
Washington: Campaign for Tobacco-Free
Kids, 2010 [accessed 2013 June 11]
U.S. Department of Health and Human Ser-
vices. Reducing Tobacco Use: A Report of the
Surgeon General. Atlanta: U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, CDC, National
Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and
Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and
Health, 2000 [accessed 2013 June 11]
Public Health Law Center. Light/Low-Yield
Cigarettes. St. Paul (MN): Public Health Law
Center, 2010 [accessed 2013 June 11]
For further information
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, National Center for Chronic
Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Office on Smoking and Health – tobac-
coinfo@cdc.gov or 800-CDC-INFO.