Self-help Articles

by Reid K. Hester, Ph.D.

Clove cigarettes are about as "herbal" and "natural" as smoking a filterless Lucky Strike. The types of tobacco used in clove cigarettes (yes, 2/3 of the cigarette is tobacco!) come from Indonesia, and typically have at least, if not more of the tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide as regular cigarettes. What's worse, the cloves contain a drug eugenol, that acts as a local anesthetic. So you don't feel all these nasty toxins irritating your throat and lungs. Cute, huh? But there's more bad news. The health effects of eugenol are unknown.

A study reported in 2003 concluded that "Clove cigarettes, bidis, and additive-free cigarettes deliver at least as much nicotine as conventional cigarettes." The researchers in this study concluded, " When individuals smoke these novel cigarettes, they adjust their cigarette smoking behavior to achieve plasma levels of nicotine comparable to those attained by smoking their own brands of cigarette. By that standard, they are at least equally dependence producing. As a consequence, smokers will increase their smoking as dependence increases, exposing themselves to ever-greater smoking related health-risks."(1)

I was not able to find data on cloves affecting the blood/tissue barrier in the lungs. But I think the real data is bad enough. Stay cool. Steer away from nicotine.

References:

"Alternative Cigarettes May Deliver More Nicotine Than Conventional Cigarettes". National Institute on Drug Abuse, August, 2003. NIDA Notes. http://www.drugabuse.gov/NIDA_notes/NNVol18N2/Alternative.html

About the Author:

Reid K. Hester, Ph.D., Director, Research Division, Behavior Therapy Associates, 9426 Indian School Rd NE, Suite 1, Albuquerque, NM 87112. Phone: 505.345.6100.

Dr. Hester is has developed an evidence-based, web application called ModerateDrinking.com to help heavy drinkers be successful in changing their drinking. A video demo of the program is available at www.behaviortherapy.com