Post by judyb on Jul 16, 2011 7:38:48 GMT -5
If the fact that smoking increases your risk of lung cancer isn't enough to make you kick the habit, maybe this will: Tobacco in
cigarettes is contaminated with a variety of molds.
In a study of 98 cigarettes with and without filters, 63 were found to be contaminated with a number of different types of mold,
researchers reported at the Interscience Conference on Antimictobial Agents and Chemotherays, sponsored by the American Society
for Microbiology.
The investigators from the Netherlands tested cigarettes from 14 different commercial brands as well as 7 samples of marijuana.
They also analyzed the smoke from burning cigarettes and marijuana.
The most commom species of mold detected was Aspergillus fumigatus, a common cause of infections, according to Dr. Paul
Verweij of the University Medical Center in Nijmegen.
If you look at all infections caused by molds, 90% are caused by Aspergillus, he noted. Such molds could be hazardous to health,
particularly those with weakened immune systems.
"Tobacco itself is a source of fungal spores and it should be recognized that this is a source of potential infection, especially in
patients with compromised immune systems like those on chemotherapy, or who have received organ transplants, or people with
AIDS, he said. "
Marijuana contained higher levels of mold than cigarettes, but none of the samples contained Aspergillus. Instead, the marijuana
was "Highly contaminated with Penicillium," Verweij said, which is not considered harmful. "Much to our surprise, we found that none
of the smoke samples contained any of the mold."
cigarettes is contaminated with a variety of molds.
In a study of 98 cigarettes with and without filters, 63 were found to be contaminated with a number of different types of mold,
researchers reported at the Interscience Conference on Antimictobial Agents and Chemotherays, sponsored by the American Society
for Microbiology.
The investigators from the Netherlands tested cigarettes from 14 different commercial brands as well as 7 samples of marijuana.
They also analyzed the smoke from burning cigarettes and marijuana.
The most commom species of mold detected was Aspergillus fumigatus, a common cause of infections, according to Dr. Paul
Verweij of the University Medical Center in Nijmegen.
If you look at all infections caused by molds, 90% are caused by Aspergillus, he noted. Such molds could be hazardous to health,
particularly those with weakened immune systems.
"Tobacco itself is a source of fungal spores and it should be recognized that this is a source of potential infection, especially in
patients with compromised immune systems like those on chemotherapy, or who have received organ transplants, or people with
AIDS, he said. "
Marijuana contained higher levels of mold than cigarettes, but none of the samples contained Aspergillus. Instead, the marijuana
was "Highly contaminated with Penicillium," Verweij said, which is not considered harmful. "Much to our surprise, we found that none
of the smoke samples contained any of the mold."