Academics are calling for a ban on cigarette filters, citing them as a major source of plastic pollution that also fails to protect smokers and may increase cancer risk. An estimated 6 trillion butts, largely made of plastic and weighing around a million tonnes, are produced annually, making them the biggest contributor by number to plastic waste.
Researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and San Diego State University argue that filters are largely ineffective and potentially harmful. Writing in the British Medical Journal, they urge an EU-wide ban. Thomas Novotny of San Diego State University noted that filters were introduced in the 1950s as a safety measure to absorb tar, but this claim has been debunked as a myth perpetuated by the tobacco industry.
Scientific studies indicate that harmful smoke components are smaller particles that filters do not capture. The US Surgeon General's website suggests ventilated filters may have contributed to higher lung cancer risks by encouraging deeper inhalation of carcinogens. The article was co-authored by Martin McKee and May Schalkwyk from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
