5 Reasons Why Herbal Cigarettes Aren’t Safe to Smoke

You may think that you can escape the danger of tobacco with herbal cigarettes, but our list of 5 reasons why herbal cigarettes aren’t safe to smoke may prove you otherwise. So before you light one more up, we recommend you to stay with us until the end of the article.

For those of you who are not familiar with herbal cigarettes, they are 100% nicotine and tobacco free cigarettes that use a mixture of herbs instead. Because they don’t contain nicotine, herbal cigarettes are considered addictive free and healthier substitute for regular, tobacco filled cigarettes. If health risks mean nothing to you, then check out our list of 5 best tasting cigarettes for new smokers.

Besides being enjoyed for their relaxing and tasteful aroma, herbal cigarettes have found some other uses. They are commonly used by people who want to quit smoking, and it is considered that they give a good result. Also, they are widely used in the film industry, for the smoking scenes featuring non-smoking actors.

Herbal cigarettes use standard rolling papers and filters like the regular cigarettes. Their filling is mostly made of corn silk and different herbs like cinnamon, mint or vanilla. Some manufacturers also use clover leaves, rose petals, lettuce, and many other additives.

Although advertised as a healthy, non-addictive replacement for regular tobacco cigarettes, herbal cigarettes don’t come without risk. Even the most studies conducted about herbal cigarettes don’t support the claims that herbal cigarettes are safe to smoke. We decided to do a bit of a research and find 5 reasons why herbal cigarettes aren’t safe to smoke. For our sources, among others, we used researches and studies conducted by Tobacco In Australia, Quit, NCBI and Health Day. Let’s see what reasons did we find!

5. Herbal Cigarettes Can Cause Heart Problems

The main reason why herbal cigarettes can cause heart problems is the emission of carbon monoxide. When a person inhales smoke from a burning cigarette, they let carbon monoxide into their body. Carbon monoxide is harmful in a way that it raises blood pressure and prevents your blood from carrying the oxygen. Repeated smoking of any substance can eventually lead to heart diseases caused by carbon monoxide.

4. Herbal Cigarettes Can Cause Allergic Reactions

Herbal cigarettes have a long history of causing allergic reactions. Since they contain many different herbs and additives, it isn’t quite possible to know all their ingredients. Some people can be allergic to some of those herbs or additives, and allergic reactions that follow can be quite severe.

3. Herbal Cigarettes Can Cause Mouth Cancer

We continue with disturbing entries on our list of 5 reasons why herbal cigarettes aren’t safe to smoke. Studies have shown that any smoking whatsoever, regardless of the content, and tobacco chewing irritate the gums and can lead to numerous oral related problems like mouth cancer, throat cancer and other.

2. Herbal Cigarettes Can Cause a Lung Cancer

Consuming herbal cigarettes doesn’t mean you are off the hook when it comes to lung cancer. Recent research entitled “DNA damage response induced by exposure of human lung adenocarcinoma cells to smoke from tobacco- and nicotine-free cigarettes” showed that even herbal cigarettes could cause lung cancer. In this research, it is shown that herbal cigarettes consummation can lead to DNA breaks which are potentially carcinogenic. The longer exposure to smoking lasted, the more severe was the damage. This study concluded that smoking nicotine-free and tobacco-free cigarettes are at least as harmful as regular cigarette smoking.

1. Herbal Cigarettes Release Tar, Carbon Monoxide, and Other Toxins

We will conclude our 5 reasons why herbal cigarettes aren’t safe to smoke with a fact that most herbal cigarette consumers overlook. Although there is no nicotine in herbal cigarettes, there are other potentially dangerous toxins that are released during smoking. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a report that says “herbal cigarettes produce many of the same toxins found in tobacco smoke, including tar and carbon monoxide.” Some other studies even concluded that in some cases, depending on the filling, herbal cigarettes can even contain the higher number of toxins than the regular cigarettes. This all shows that although herbal cigarettes may not be addictive and are free from nicotine, they can be just as harmful to people’s health like the regular tobacco filled cigarettes.