Chemicals In Cigarette Smoke

Today there are 19 known carcinogens in cigarettes. The following are some of the most potent carcinogens:

Benzopyrene is a highly carcinogenic and mutagenic compound which is formed during the incomplete combustion of organic matter. Tobacco manufacturers have experimented with combustionless vaporizer technology to allow cigarettes to be consumed without the formation of carcinogenic benzopyrenes.

Nitrosamine is a "deadly cancer-causing" compound found in cigarette smoke but not in uncured tobacco leaves. Nitrosamine forms on flue-cured tobacco leaves during the curing process through a chemical reaction between nicotine and other compounds contained in the uncured leaf and various oxides of nitrogen found in all combustion gases. Switching to indirect-fire curing has been shown to reduce nitrosamine levels to less than 0.1 parts per million.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the following carcinogens are found in cigarette smoke:

Chemical Carcinogens In Cigarette Smoke

Amount (per cigarette)
Acetaldehyde
980 micrograms to 1.37 milligrams
Acrylonitrile
formerly 1 to 2 milligrams. This product was used as a fumigant in tobacco. Its use has since been discontinued.
4-Aminobiphenyl
0.2 to 23 nanograms per cigarette
o-Anisidine Hydrochloride
unknown
Arsenic
unknown
Benzene
5.9 to 75 micrograms
Beryllium
0.5 nanograms
1,3-Butadiene
152 to 400 micrograms
Cadmium
1.7 micrograms
1,1-Dimethylhydrazine
unknown
Ethylene oxide
unknown
Formaldehyde
unknown
Furan
unknown
Heterocyclic amines
unknown
Hydrazine
32 micrograms
Isoprene
3.1 milligrams
Lead
unknown
2-Naphthylamine
1.5 to 35 nanograms
Nitromethane
unknown
N-Nitrosodi-n-Butylamine
3 nanograms
N-Nitrosodiethanolamine
24 to 36 nanograms
N-Nitrosodiethylamine
up to 8.3 nanograms
N-Nitrosodimethylamine
5.7 to 43 nanograms
N-Nitrosodi-n-Propylamine
1 nanogram
4-(N-Nitrosomethylamino)-1-(3-Pyridyl)-1-Butanone
up to 4.2 micrograms
N-Nitrosonornicotine
14 micrograms
N-Nitrosopiperidine
unknown
N-Nitrosopyrrolidine
113 nanograms
N-Nitrososarcosine
22 to 460 nanograms
Polonium-210
variable, depending on soil and fertilizer used to grow tobacco[2][3]
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon
28 to 100 milligrams
o-Toluidine
32 nanograms
Vinyl chloride
5.6 to 27 nanograms

These are just a few carcinogens or chemicals in cigarette smoke that are known today. As time goes by, more chemicals may be discovered. Quit Smoking Now