Is smoking harmful?

Yes, smoking is harmful. Cigarette smoking causes serious disease and is addictive.

Cigarette smoke contains more than 6,000 chemicals or “smoke constituents.” Public-health authorities have classified approximately 100 of them as causes or potential causes of smoking-related diseases such as lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, and emphysema. Find out about the health effects of smoking tobacco.

However, alternatives to smoking exist—find out about our commonsense approach to public health and discover our portfolio of smoke-free products that we believe are a better choice for adults who would otherwise continue to smoke.