Are Cigarettes a Major Source of Radiation Exposure?

In 40 years Tobacco Companies have found that cigarette smoke contains a dangerous radioactive substance that exposes heavy smokers to the radiation equivalent of having 300 chest X-rays a year.

Researchers showed in a study that cigarette manufacturers knew that tobacco contained polonium-210 but avoided drawing public attention to the fact for fear of "waking a sleeping giant".

Polonium-210 is a very dangerous because it emits alpha radiation which can cause about 11,700 lung cancer deaths each year worldwide. In 2006 Alexander Litvinenko, a Russian writer, died after being poisoned with polonium-210.

The polonium-210 in tobacco plants comes from high-phosphate fertilizers used on crops. The fertilizer is manufactured from rocks that contain radioisotopes such as poloniu-m-210.

Researchers found that the radioactive substance is absorbed through the plant's roots and deposited on its leaves.

People who smoke one and a half packets of cigarettes a day are exposed to as much radiation as they would receive from 300 chest X-rays a year, according to research. Australian tobacco companies were not legally obliged to reveal the levels of chemicals contained in cigarettes.

This made it difficult to know exactly how damaging PO-210 was and meant it was impossible to know what effect it had on other poisons contained in cigarettes. Researchers are sure that PO-210 is obviously highly toxic and they will approve any efforts to publicize it danger.

They added: "But the industry needs to be better regulated before we can support specific warnings."
Researchers found a lot of arguments for to proof that PO-210 is very dangerous for people’s health. After an inhalation tests they have shown that PO-210 is a cause of lung cancer in animals.

It has also been estimated to be responsible for 1% of all US lung cancers, or 1600 deaths a year. The US authors analyzed 1500 internal tobacco company documents, finding that tobacco companies conducted scientific studies on removing polonium-210 from cigarettes but were unable to do so.

Philip Morris even decided not to publish internal research on polonium-210 which was more favorable to the tobacco industry than previous studies for fear of heightening public awareness of PO-210.

Urging his boss not to publish the results, one scientist wrote: "It has the potential of waking a sleeping giant." Tobacco company lawyers played a key role in suppressing information about the research to protect the companies from litigation.

Cigarettes Smoking and Tobacco

Tobacco kills smokers. This is the only product that even in small doses adversely affects health. In general, smokers die 10 years earlier than non-smokers. Smoking reduces potency, not to mention yellow skin, bad smell from mouth. Tobacco is the reason of many diseases. Smoking causes at least 90% of lung cancer, 15-20% of other cancers, 75% of chronic bronchitis and lung emphysemas, 25% of deaths from cardiovascular diseases.

Smoking damages health and kills people around the smoker. Passive smoking shortens life in average by 5 years.

Smoking kills and harms the health of children. Smoking before and especially during pregnancy, when breastfeeding greatly harms the health of child, and also increases the risk of several diseases throughout his life.

Smoking causes severe addiction, comparable in strength with heroin. According to a study of one of the world's largest tobacco companies (Imperial Tobacco, in 1989): "43% of smokers tried to quit smoking, but only 1.8% have succeeded. 72% of women who stopped smoking during pregnancy resume smoking after giving birth.

There is no safe tobacco. The impact of "light", "mild" cigarettes and other has no different from any other cigarette, it is only tobacco companies' marketing move aimed at deceiving smokers.

Marketing moves tobacco companies is extremely subtle. This advertising and entertainment at sporting events, and in colored magazines, the distribution of cigarettes in the streets, an indirect advertising in the movies. Tobacco companies intimidate owners of restaurants that smoking bans would lead to lower attendance and thus reduce profits.

Is Smoking free choice? Tobacco companies argue that smoking is a human right. Ask your friends smokers if they would like to quit smoking. Ask them what they knew about the dangers of smoking at a time when they started smoking. Ask those who live near smokers whether they are pleased to breathe cigarettes smoke and see cigarette butts under their feet.