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Cigarillos No Safe Alternative to Cigarettesby Jefferson K.S. Delport Cigarillos is a Spanish name for little cigars. In Europe they are known as "Seven Minute Cigars" because they take roughly seven minutes to smoke. Cigarrillos fall into the family of cigars. They are narrow with 3 grams of tobacco wrapped in whole-leaf tobacco. Cigars are distinguished from tobacco cigarettes by the wrapping paper. The great misconception in many people's minds is that little cigars are a viable alternative to cigarettes. The hope is that they are safer and healthier than cigarettes yet looking like cigarettes. However this is far from the truth. Cigarrillos are tobacco products which contain harmful toxins and cancer causing carcinogens as much as those found in tobacco cigarettes. In terms of smoking approach, cigar smoking does not permit inhalation of smoke because this causes irritation to eyes, nose and throat of the smoking individual. For this reason smoke is exhaled. Consequently, looked at as cigarillos vs cigarettes, cigarrillos pose a relatively lower risk of lung cancer than cigarettes because smoke is not inhaled. This however does not altogether follow that a cigarrillos smoker will not contract lung cancer. In fact little cigars are associated with cancer of the lips, tongue and mouth due to the contact between smoke and the mouth during smoking even though the smoke is exhaled. Second hand smoke produced by little cigars is also as dangerous as that produced by cigarettes. Cigar smokers also carry the smoking health risk of heart disease and cardiovascular disease. Typical "seven minute cigar" smokers smoke 5 to 10 cigars per day. The ability to be smoked on the go without the hassle of a 1 hour smoke like standard cigars makes them appealing to younger smokers and even closer to cigarettes. Unfortunately, cigarette smokers who switch to cigarrillos tend to inhale the smoke due to the accumulated experience of smoking cigarettes. The migration from tobacco cigarettes to cigarillos cannot be based on safety or better health. Both are smoking tobacco products which are harmful to health. A good indicator is that both result in bad breath and even peridontal disease. Both products are addictive as they both contain nicotine. Just like cigarettes, to quit little cigars smokers will require stop smoking products combined with quit smoking programs. Due to the health problems associated with cigars, in the United States and Europe little cigar packaging is required by tobacco regulations to warn users of smoking hazards of the product. This should not be ignored as it is scientifically proven. Cigarrillos are no safe smoking alternative to cigarettes.
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