Preserving Tradition Starts with Protecting Your Health
Commercial tobacco harms its users and the people around them. Stopping commercial tobacco use helps keep you healthy, and it also protects your family members and the environment around you.
Commercial tobacco harms its users and the people around them. Stopping commercial tobacco use helps keep you healthy, and it also protects your family members and the environment around you.
It’s helpful to understand the differences between traditional and commercial tobacco.
Traditional tobacco has been used for ceremonies and medicine by Indigenous Peoples for centuries. However, commercial tobacco, like cigarettes and chew, are often used regularly and are therefore much more harmful. Commercial tobacco has dangerous chemicals that make it highly addictive and can lead to serious health problems or death.
Other nicotine products, such as vapes and pouches, are even further from traditional tobacco. Some don’t even have real tobacco, but they still have harmful, addictive chemicals.
The tobacco industry has a history of using Indigenous imagery to sell harmful products. In the 1800s, they introduced commercial tobacco to Indigenous communities, using our culture to sell brands like Big Red and Natural American Spirit.
From the late 1800s to the 1970s, laws banned many cultural practices, pushing Indigenous communities toward commercial cigarettes. Tobacco companies also took advantage of our tribal sovereignty, avoiding taxes and laws that limited smoking. They offered discounts to get more Indigenous people hooked. As a result, Indigenous communities have had the highest tobacco use in the U.S. since the 1970s.1
Quitting commercial tobacco helps protect your health and the health of those around you. Commercial tobacco in any form – cigarettes, chew – causes cancer, heart disease, stroke, and other serious health issues. It also harms others through secondhand smoke (the smoke from a cigarette, cigar, or pipes, which increases the risk of lung cancer and other diseases. Stopping now improves your life and sets a healthier example for younger generations.
For Indigenous communities, Colorado QuitLine coaches understand the cultural role of tobacco and offer free, respectful support to help you quit or cut back.