What’s In Cigarette Smoke?
A Recipe For Toxic Soup
One cigarette contains over 4,000 chemicals — 69 are known to cause cancer to humans and over 200 are known to be toxic to humans. Some examples are:
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ACETIC ACID: found in hair dye and developer |
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ACETONE: found in fingernail polish remover |
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AMMONIA: found in many household cleaners used to clean floors and toilets |
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ARSENIC: found in rat poison |
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BENZENE: found in rubber cement |
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BUTANE: found in lighter fluid |
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CADMIUM: found in batteries and artists’ oil paint |
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CARBON MONOXIDE: found in car exhaust fumes |
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ETHANOL: found in alcohol |
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FORMALDEYHDE: found in embalming fluid |
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HEXAMINE: found in barbecue lighter fluid |
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HYDRAZINE: used in jet and rocket fuels |
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LEAD: found in batteries |
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MERCURY: found in the liquid that was used in older thermometers (not used anymore as it was too dangerous) |
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METHANE GAS: found in manure or any other feces |
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METHANOL: used in rocket fuel |
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NAPTHALENES: used in explosives, moth balls, and paint pigments |
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NICOTINE: this addictive drug has also been used as an insecticide |
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PHENOL: used in disinfectants and plastics |
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STYRENE: found in insulation material |
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TAR: found in road pavement and roofing materials |
Additional Toxic Ingredients Found in Cigarettes and Cigarette Smoke:
CARBON TETRACHLORIDE: also found in dry cleaning fluid
DDT: found in a pesticide so dangerous that it has been banned for use in the U.S.
HYDROGEN CYANIDE: also used as poison in gas chambers
NITROSAMINES: found in weed killers
POLONIUM: found in radioactive substances; one pack of cigarettes equals the radiation dosage of 300 chest x-rays in one year
RADON: a gas known to cause lung cancer
TOLUENE: embalmer’s glue, industrial solvents
AND THE LIST OF POISONS GOES ON AND ON!!!!
Adapted from website information from the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Office of Health Promotion, Education and Tobacco Use Prevention:
mdpublichealth.org/ohpetup/tobacco/tobacco.html
For more information please contact:
The American Lung Association of D.C.
202-466-5864 or visit us on the web at:
www.aladc.org
www.tobaccofreefamilies.org