--- title: Smokeless Tobacco Has Higher Toxin Exposure Than Cigs, Study Suggests description: Smokeless tobacco may expose people to more toxins than cigarettes canonical: https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-11-18T05:05:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:57:09.285Z article:section: Health og:title: Smokeless Tobacco Has Higher Toxin Exposure Than Cigs, Study Suggests og:description: Smokeless tobacco may expose people to more toxins than cigarettes og:url: https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Smokeless Tobacco Has Higher Toxin Exposure Than Cigs, Study Suggests twitter:description: Smokeless tobacco may expose people to more toxins than cigarettes twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Smokeless Tobacco More Toxic Than Cigarettes, Study Says > Sponsored content. 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With smokeless tobacco products becoming more popular, the American Heart Association issued a new warning about the health risks associated with their use_ by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Nov 18, 2015 5:05 AM UTC by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Nov 18, 2015 5:05 AM UTC [In a new study](http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/early/2015/11/09/1055-9965.EPI-15-0376.abstract), researchers from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that adults who used only smokeless tobacco had higher levels of nicotine concentrations in their system as well as higher concentrations of tobacco-specific nitrosamines, compounds linked to higher cancer risk. The findings, published in the journal _Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention_ came from an analysis of markers of tobacco exposure among 23,684 adults participating in a survey who also provided urine or blood samples for measurements from 1999 to 2012. “Our results have shown that smokeless tobacco users have high levels of known harmful and addictive constituents and that in some cases these levels are higher than those observed among cigarette smokers. This finding is a cause of considerable concern for individual and public health,” the study authors conclude in their report. The researchers note that smokeless tobacco is especially common among young people, with 9.6% of male high school students currently reporting they chew tobacco, snuff or dip in 2013. The study authors say the findings highlight the need for further study of the toxic ingredients found in smokeless tobacco, especially since tobacco manufacturers are pushing back against regulations for stricter warnings on their products. [Snus maker Swedish Match recently petitioned the FDA](http://time.com/3817902/fda-snus-smokeless-tobacco/) to remove required warning labels that note that snus can cause mouth cancer, gum disease and tooth loss. The company is arguing that there is insufficient evidence to support these claims. The need for more research is also essential as young people in particular are turning to sources of tobacco and nicotine other than cigarettes. Though the new study did not look at e-cigarettes, other federal data has suggested that [use of e-cigs among middle and high schoolers has tripled](http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2015/p0416-e-cigarette-use.html) and questions about their effect on health remain. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/"},"headline":"Smokeless Tobacco More Toxic Than Cigarettes, Study Says","datePublished":"2015-11-18T05:05:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:57:09.285Z","description":"New data from FDA and CDC researchers suggests chewing tobacco or snus can increase exposure to harmful substances","url":"https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/","keywords":["Public Health","tobacco","Nicotine","chemicals"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alexandra Sifferlin","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/public-health/","name":"Public Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/","name":"Smokeless Tobacco More Toxic Than Cigarettes, Study Says"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"When There's No Smoke, It's Still Dire","description":"With smokeless tobacco products becoming more popular, the American Heart Association issued a new warning about the health risks associated with their use","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/bspWu15K/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2010-09-17T14:18:48.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/bspWu15K.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/","duration":"PT2M34S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4116934/smokeless-tobacco-more-toxic-than-cigarettes-study-says/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```