Effect of Cigarette, Cigar, and Pipe Smoking on Nicotine Excretion

Abstract

IN STUDIES of the relative effect of cigarette, cigar, and pipe smoking on lipid metabolism and catecholamine activity,^1,2 differences and similarities were observed which were ascribed to the degree of nicotine absorption that occurs with these different forms of smoking. To test the validity of this assumption, the nicotine content of the urine was determined during cigarette, cigar, and pipe smoking in man and dog. The relationship of inhaling during smoking to nicotine excretion was also investigated. Method of Study In the human studies, 29 normal male subjects, age 21 to 56, participated. All were habitual smokers of cigarettes, cigars, or pipes, and some used more than one form of tobacco. In the initial series of experiments, each subject smoked four cigarettes (4 gm tobacco), a 4-gm segment of cigar, or 4 gm of pipe tobacco per hour for four hours. The customary methods of smoking were used,