More teen boys are using smokeless tobacco

According to a federal government report released Thursday, smokeless tobacco use by adolescent boys in the United States increased from 3.4 to 4.4 percent from 2002 to 2007.

Some smokers believe switching to smokeless tobacco will help them quit smoking, but the report found that 88.1 percent of daily smokers who started using smokeless tobacco were still smoking six months later.

Eric Broderick, the agency’s acting administrator, said in a government news release. “We need to make everyone aware that all forms of tobacco use can cause nicotine addiction, cancer and death.”