Public Warned on Harmful Effects of Roll-up Cigarettes

The dramatic increase in the number of users of roll-up cigarettes might give other people the wrong impression. The rise from 18 percent in 1990 to 40 percent in 2013 among male smokers using hand-rolled cigarettes and the jump from two percent to 23 percent in the same period among female counterparts do not necessarily suggest a shift to a "healthier" option.

Some people might think that smoking roll-up cigarettes is healthier than the manufactured ones, but health experts are saying that roll-up cigarettes do just as much harm to the body, "rotting the body inside out", as the Public Health England (PHE) describes cigarette smoking.

PHE advocates informing the public of the harm smoking does to the body. Its new digital campaign and billboard ads serve as reminder to smokers of the damage brought by cigarettes to the entire body.

Among the statistics provided by PHE are the increase in likelihood (59 per cent) of smokers developing Alzheimer's disease and those most likely to suffer cognitive impairment (53 per cent). The study also said that smokers heal slower and have increased risk of back and neck pain, with a 79 per cent increase in chronic back pain and 114 per cent increase in disabling lower back pain. For bone damage, smokers are said to have a 25 per cent increased risk of fracture and a 40 per cent increase in their probability of breaking a hip.

Increased risk of age-related macular degeneration of 78 per cent to 358 per cent, and also an increased likelihood of age-related cataracts are revealed for smokers who are susceptible to acquiring eye-related diseases.

"Significant numbers of smokers are now using roll-ups without realizing that gram for gram of tobacco are just as unsafe as ordinary cigarettes," Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer, said. "The research we have got suggests that people think it's safer to smoke a roll-up up but they are wrong; it is not safe. No tobacco is safe and gram for gram it is as harmful as ordinary cigarettes."

Davies added, "This is our third hard-hitting campaign. The first was about cancer, the second was about heart attacks and strokes, and this one is about the general rot that tobacco does to your body. We have evaluated the other two campaigns and they have had real impact on the public and that has then fed through into orders for quit kits and people stopping smoking."

One in every two long-term smokers are said to die prematurely from a smoking-related disease unless they quit.

"While many smokers know the damage cigarettes do to their hearts and lungs, they are much less likely to be aware of how harmful smoking is to the body - essentially 'rotting' it from the inside out, and roll-ups are no exception," Davies said.

"January is a time when many people make New Year's resolutions to improve their health and try to stop smoking. Millions of people have used Smoke free support and we are hoping that this year, even more will take advantage of the free expertise and resources on offer," Davies added.