Industry and trade Minister Wimal Weerawansa was recently photographed holding a cinnamon cigarette in his mouth, the media reported. That was during the launch of a cinnamon cigarette claiming to be healthy. The action of the Minister was criticized by many in the society. But to this day no action seems to have been taken with regard to this cinnamon cigarette.
Cigarette companies around the world use a variety of strategies to maintain their smoking habit. Among them is the introduction of other nicotine-free tobacco products. The introduction of cinnamon cigarettes in Sri Lanka is one such tactic and the main reason for this is the rapid decline in smoking in Sri Lanka, according to the Alcohol and Drug Information Center.
It is with the blessing of the tobacco companies that they are able to carry out such propaganda under the guise of cinnamon cigarettes. The hidden motives of these businesses may be to normalize and socialize cigarettes, which have been disliked and despised by society.
According to the Alcohol and Drug Information Center (ADIC), not all smoked tobacco products contain nicotine, which contains all the other harmful substances, but can cause serious health problems. Cinnamon cigarettes also contain tar, carbon monoxide, aromatic amines, and other first-line carcinogens, which have been scientifically tested in cigarette-producing countries. In Ayurvedic smoking, it is not permissible for a normal person who is not a disease to continue smoking which is not prescribed to the patient in a specific dose for a specified period of time by a certified doctor.
Although clinical research into the health effects of cinnamon cigarettes should be presented before it is popularized as a cinnamon cigarette industry, there has been no conclusive evidence that cinnamon cigarettes are health-promoting. The human lungs are designed to absorb normal air from the environment. Therefore, experts have pointed out that inhaling any type of smoke into the lungs can cause serious health damage, according to the Adic Center.
Tobacco companies around the world are already working to popularize cannabis use, and powerful tobacco companies are now buying up most of the commercial cannabis cultivation, using the term medicinal or ayurvedic.
The ADIC Center has urged the government to spread cannabis in the country in the same way after the introduction of cinnamon cigarettes. That the parties concerned should take action immediately.