USSTC believes that smokeless tobacco product users and potential smokeless tobacco product users should rely on the messages of the U.S. Surgeon General and public health authorities worldwide in making all smokeless tobacco product use-related decisions.
In this section of our website, therefore, you will find information on these smokeless tobacco-related messages, as well as links to government and public health authorities, including the U.S. Surgeon General's reports related to tobacco. In addition, our smokeless tobacco product packages and advertising materials carry the four federally-mandated warnings required for smokeless tobacco packaging and advertisements.
The U.S. Surgeon General and other public health authorities have determined that smokeless tobacco products:
- cause serious diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and other diseases of the mouth, gums and teeth;
- may increase the risk of serious diseases when used in combination with smoking;
- cause adverse reproductive effects and should not be used during pregnancy;
- are not a safe alternative to smoking.
Smokeless tobacco product users and potential smokeless tobacco product users should rely on these messages in making all tobacco use-related decisions.
Click on the links at the right to obtain more information about smokeless tobacco product use and disease in smokeless tobacco product users.
The U.S. Surgeon General and other public health authorities have determined that smokeless tobacco products are addictive. It can be very difficult to quit using smokeless tobacco products, but this should not deter smokeless tobacco product users who want to quit from trying to do so. Learn more about
Quitting the Use of Smokeless Tobacco Products.
The Surgeon General of the United States has been the nation's leading spokesperson on matters of public health since 1871. A report on smokeless tobacco product use and health was published in 1986. For more information on the Surgeon General reports related to tobacco use, please visit the
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). To access all Surgeon General reports, please visit the
National Library of Medicine website and click on the full list of reports link.
To reduce the health effects of tobacco use, the best thing to do is to quit. Public health authorities do not endorse using smokeless tobacco products less frequently or switching to lower nicotine smokeless tobacco products as a satisfactory way of reducing health risks. Public health authorities have also determined that smokeless tobacco products are not a safe alternative to smoking.
It can be difficult to quit using smokeless tobacco products, and many smokeless tobacco users who try to quit do not succeed. Many smokeless tobacco users in the United States and around the world have succeeded in quitting, however.
There are many organizations that offer information, counseling and other services focusing on how to quit using tobacco products, including smokeless tobacco, and where to go for help. Other good resources include your doctor, dentist, local hospital or employer. The national quitline network (1-800-QUITNOW) can put those who use tobacco products, including smokeless products, in touch with programs that can help them quit. You may also click on the links above to obtain specific information on quitting smokeless tobacco product use directly from the U.S. government and other public health organizations.
Another resource for quitting information is QuitAssist
®. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), quitting smokeless tobacco products is a lot like stopping smoking. QuitAssist
® is a free resource offered by Philip Morris USA, an Altria company, designed to connect smokers who have decided to quit to a wealth of expert quitting information from public health authorities and others. The QuitAssist
® resource also includes
smokeless tobacco quitting information.
Cheryl K. Olson, Sc.D., a respected public health writer, wrote and edited the information for QuitAssist
® in conjunction with a review board with expertise in the area of tobacco cessation. To learn more, visit the
QuitAssist® website.
