BACKGROUND NOTE: This confidential Philip Morris document admits the presence of
radioactive polonium-210 and lead-210 in the smoke of their commercial
cigarettes. It explains that this is because there is crushed up
uranium rock contained in the fertilizer they use on their tobacco
plants. The document says that the problem could be remedied by
changing to another type of fertilizer but that is "probably a valid but
expensive point."
Quotes:
"210- Pb and 210 -Po are present intobacco and smoke."
..."For alpha particles from Po-210 to be the cause of lung cancers in
unlikely due to the amount of radioactivity of a particular energy
necessary of induction. Evidence to date, however, does not allow one
to state this is an impossibility."
...The soluble 210-Po is that which one would expect to be cleared by
normal physiological processes. [translation: you can cough out the
radioactive polinium 210].
Search Tip: this document (and others relating to it) can also be found
by doing a search on the PM site using the keywords "radioactive
cigarettes."
Anne Landman
American Lung Association of Colorado, West Region Office
Grand Junction
Type of document: Confidential Philip Morris internal memorandum, on company letterhead
Author: R.A.Comes
Date: April 2, 1980
Title: Newscript: "Radioactive cigarettes" 2/22/80
Site: Philip Morris document site: www.pmdocs.com/
URL: http://www.pmdocs.com/getimg.asp?pgno=0&start=0&bool=radioactive%20cigarettes&docid=2012611337/1338
