Pipes

Pipe tobacco is usually a blend of tobacco. It may contain a large percentage of additives, such as sweeteners. Like cigar smoke, pipe smoke is alkaline.

Pipe smoking rates

Pipe smoking has not been recently promoted much in Australia, compared to cigarettes and cigars. About 1 to 2% of Australians smoke pipes at least occasionally.

Pipes and disease

Note: 'Pipe smokers' refer to people who only smoke pipes and have never smoked cigarettes.

Pipe smokers have higher death rates for smoking related disease than non-smokers, but lower death rates than cigarette smokers. The reasons for this are similar to those for cigar smokers: in particular they tend not to inhale the smoke into their lungs.

On comparing disease rates of pipe smokers who have never smoked cigarettes with cigarette smokers:

• Pipe smokers have a higher risk for cancer of the lip than any other tobacco users.
• Pipe smokers have similar risks to cigarette smokers for cancers of the mouth, throat, larynx and oesophagus.
• Pipe smokers have lower risks than cigarette smokers for lung cancer, heart disease, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis. These risks are higher than non-smokers.
• Pipe smoking also causes cancers of the pancreas, stomach and bladder.

Although there is limited research on pipe smoking, it appears to have similar risks to cigar smoking for contracting smoking-related diseases.

References

1. US Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Smoking and health. A report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, Maryland: US Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Public Health Service, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office on Smoking and Health. DHEW Publication No (PHS) 79-50066, 1979.
2. Hoffmann D et al. Comparison of the yield of several selected components in the smoke of different tobacco products. JNCI 1963; 31: 627-637.
3. Hassard K (ed). Australia's National Tobacco Campaign. Evaluation Report Volume Two. Canberra: Commonwealth Dept. of Health and Aged Care, 2000. pp.56.
4. Hill D, White V, Scollo M. Smoking behaviours of Australian adults in 1995: trends and concerns. MJA 1998; 168: 209-213.
5. US Department of Health and Human Services. Reducing the Health Consequence of smoking: 25 years of progress. A report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Service, Centers for Disease Control, Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 1989.
6. International Agency for Research on Cancer. Tobacco smoking and Tobacco Smoke. Summary of Data Reported and Evaluation. IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. World Health Organisation, 2002. Available at http://monographs.iarc.fr/htdocs/monographs/vol83/01-smoking.html (accessed 11/2/03)
7. US Department of Health and Human Services. The health consequences of smoking: cancer. A report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Service, Public Health Service, Office on Smoking and Health, 1989.