Smokeless Tobacco and Your Health

• Can smokeless tobacco affect my oral health?
• Does smokeless tobacco cause cancer?
• Can smokeless tobacco use cause problems in other parts of the body? 

Can smokeless tobacco affect my oral health?

Smokeless tobacco may cause tooth decay in exposed tooth roots. It can also cause your gums to pull away from your teeth. If this happens, your gums will not grow back.

Additionally, leathery white patches and red sores are common in dippers and chewers. Those patches and sores can turn into cancer.

Does smokeless tobacco cause cancer?

Smokeless tobacco is tobacco that is not burned. It includes chewing tobacco, dip, snuff, and betel quid. At least 28 chemicals in smokeless tobacco have been found to cause cancer. It causes cancer of the:

• Esophagus
• Mouth
• Pancreas

Betel quid is a combination of betel leaf, areca nut, and slaked lime. In many countries, tobacco is added, and the product is known as gutka, ghutka, or gutkha. Like other smokeless tobacco products, betel quid and gutka are known to cause cancer of the:

• Esophagus
• Lip
• Mouth
• Pharynx
• Tongue

Can smokeless tobacco use cause problems in other parts of the body?

Recent research shows that smokeless tobacco use might also cause problems beyond the mouth. Scientists are looking at the possibility that using smokeless tobacco might play a role in causing heart disease and stroke.

Learn more about:

• Smokeless tobacco in this National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), guide
• Smokeless tobacco and cancer in this National Cancer Institute, part of NIH, fact sheet