Carbon monoxide and thiocyanate levels in low tar/nicotine smokers

The purpose of this study was to compare carbon monoxide (CO) in expired breath and thiocyanate (SCN) in saliva of smokers who had spontaneously switched to lower tar/nicotine cigarettes with those same variables in nonswitchers and nonsmokers. CO was measured in 200 smokers and 28 nonsmokers; SCN i...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Addictive behaviors 1981, Vol.6 (4), p.337-343
Main Authors: Jaffe, Jerome H., Kanzler, Maureen, Friedman, Larry, Stunkard, Albert J., Verebey, Karl
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:The purpose of this study was to compare carbon monoxide (CO) in expired breath and thiocyanate (SCN) in saliva of smokers who had spontaneously switched to lower tar/nicotine cigarettes with those same variables in nonswitchers and nonsmokers. CO was measured in 200 smokers and 28 nonsmokers; SCN in 150 smokers and 52 nonsmokers. CO in breath correlated significantly and positively with number of cigarettes smoked but did not vary significantly across a wide range of tar and nicotine deliveries. Smokers' SCN levels were far in excess of those of nonsmokers but were not significantly related to tar or nicotine levels of their brands. While there was no substantial decrease in CO among smokers of the lowest tar/nicotine brands, neither was there an increase. For most smokers the risks of switching with respect to CO and SCN appear minimal.
ISSN:0306-4603
1873-6327
DOI:10.1016/0306-4603(81)90049-6