Experts urge UK to ban cigarette filters to protect health and environment

"Cigarette filters don't work and are a major source of plastic pollution that should be banned by the UK government, experts have said. In an editorial in Addiction, the journal for the Society for the Study of Addiction, researchers argue that ministers should use a forthcoming tobacco and vapes bill to ban filters in the interests of public health and the environment."

"Cigarette filters were designed to give the false impression of safety, said Dr Katherine East, associate professor in public health at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, who is lead author on the editorial. In reality, they do not reduce toxicant exposure and may even increase harm, because they lead people to inhale deeper and for longer and can embed harmful fibres and microplastics in the lungs."

"East and her colleagues cited polling showing that more than three-quarters of people and more than four-fifths of smokers erroneously believe that filters protect against the health harms of smoking. In fact, they argued, filters could actually increase the harm from cigarettes, by making them more palatable, by compelling users to inhale more deeply to achieve the same nicotine buzz, and by shedding cellulose acetate fibres and microplastics into users' lungs."

Cigarette filters were designed to create a false impression of safety but do not reduce toxicant exposure and may increase harm by causing people to inhale deeper and for longer and by embedding harmful fibres and microplastics in the lungs. Filters are a major contributor to global plastic waste and are technically single-use plastics commonly kept for perceived health reasons. Smoking prevalence in the UK has declined since 2011, yet about 6 million adults still smoke, averaging roughly 11 cigarettes per day. Polling indicates more than three-quarters of the public and over four-fifths of smokers erroneously believe filters protect against health harms. The combination of increased palatability, deeper inhalation, and shedding of cellulose acetate fibres has been linked to rises in lung adenocarcinoma. The forthcoming tobacco and vapes bill would prevent anyone born from 2009 from legally smoking by gradually raising the legal purchase age, creating a policy opportunity to ban filters for public health and environmental reasons.

Read at www.theguardian.com