Herbal Cigarettes No Safer Than Tobacco, Finds IIT Gandhinagar–US Study
Gandhinagar, May 29 (TNT): Herbal cigarettes, often marketed as natural, tobacco-free and healthier alternatives to conventional cigarettes, are not safer than tobacco cigarettes and may, in some cases, be even more harmful, according to a new joint study by the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IIT Gandhinagar) and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The findings, released ahead of World No Tobacco Day on May 31, show that emissions from herbal cigarettes were comparable to or exceeded those from tobacco cigarettes across nearly all parameters measured by researchers.
The study examined emissions from two of India’s leading tobacco cigarette brands and four popular herbal cigarette varieties containing ingredients such as basil, clove, cinnamon, mint, green tea, water lily and chamomile. Two of the herbal products used tendu leaves as wrappers, similar to those used in bidis.
Published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Hazardous Materials, the research analysed the physical, chemical and oxidative characteristics of mainstream smoke generated by both herbal and tobacco cigarettes.
Prof. Sameer Patel of IIT Gandhinagar said the findings challenge the widespread perception that tobacco-free products are risk-free.
“Emissions from herbal cigarettes are comparable to or exceed those from tobacco cigarettes on nearly every metric we measured. Leaf-wrapped herbal variants turned out to be the most hazardous of all the samples tested,” he said.
Researchers used a sealed automated chamber designed to simulate human inhalation patterns and measured particle emissions and chemical composition.
The study found that herbal cigarette smoke emitted approximately 20 per cent more sub-500 nanometre particles than tobacco smoke. These fine particles have been increasingly linked to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.
The team also assessed oxidative potential, a measure of a substance’s ability to generate reactive oxygen species that can trigger inflammation and damage tissues.
Herbal cigarette particulate matter recorded significantly higher oxidative potential than tobacco cigarette smoke. Tendu leaf-wrapped variants showed oxidative potential roughly 49 per cent higher than paper-wrapped products.
In another notable finding, one basil-filled herbal cigarette marketed as “chemical-free” and promoting a healthy lifestyle recorded the highest lead concentration among the products tested.
The study also highlighted regulatory gaps surrounding herbal cigarettes. While India’s Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 governs tobacco products through health warnings and advertising restrictions, many tobacco-free smoking products fall outside these regulations.
Lead author Dr. Alok Kumar Thakur noted that several herbal cigarette brands claim benefits such as relieving cough, improving sleep and reducing anxiety, despite limited scientific evidence regarding their emissions and health impacts.
The researchers stressed that the study does not directly assess disease outcomes but evaluates the characteristics and biological reactivity of smoke emissions.
They called for stronger regulation of tobacco alternatives, particularly those marketed using wellness-oriented messaging that may appeal to younger consumers and first-time smokers.
The study coincides with this year’s World No Tobacco Day theme, “Unmasking the appeal: countering nicotine and tobacco addiction,” and adds to the growing body of evidence informing public health policy on alternative smoking products.
TNT TS
