HC Deb 23 January 1986 vol 90 cc304-5W
Mr. Michael Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what information he has as to the statistical health hazards of (a) using Skoal Bandits, (b) using cigars and (c) using pipe tobaccos.

Mr. Whitney

Prolonged use of moist tobacco snuff in the mouth has been associated with an increased risk of oral cancer of a similar magnitude to that seen in pipe and cigar smokers and comparable effects are anticipated with the recently introduced Skoal Bandits.

In reviewing the evidence regarding the health hazards of cigar and pipe smoking, the American Surgeon General's report of 1979 concluded that although the overall risk is small relative to the enourmous risk of smoking cigarettes, the risks of the less common, but very serious cancers of the mouth and larynx, are similar to those of cigarette smokers, namely 20–30 times greater than those of non-smokers.

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