One of the most common stereotypes in sports is that in order to be a "ballplayer" you have to chew tobacco. No doubt you have watched a major league game where a player has a bulging cheek or a tin in their back pocket; or have seen a pitcher come out of a game and put a huge wad of chewing tobacco under their lip. These images of athletic role models ‘chewing’, combined with peer pressure is a HUGE influence on our Little Leaguers. Not to mention that there are many products available to minors marketed to appear like smokeless tobacco products (jerky chew and big league chew are a couple of examples).
Rules on tobacco in baseball: Minor Leagues
All tobacco use is banned in minor leagues affiliated with Major League Baseball. MLB has the authority to set policy for the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, the umbrella organization for the minor league system. In 1991, it banned chewing tobacco in the lower minors. Two years later, it extended the ban to all tobacco products in the entire system. All uniformed personnel --- players, coaches, and umpires --- were prohibited from using any tobacco in the "workplace," defined as the ballpark, team facilities, or team buses. Fines for violations started at $100; the base fine was $1,000 as of 2010. According to players interviewed by MLB.com in 2008, the ban is backed up by action: Players and their lockers are subject to tobacco checks.
(source: Livestrong.com http://www.livestrong.com/article/148627-rules-on-tobacco-use-in-baseball/#ixzz13XB4UBub)
There are aggressive anti-smoking campaigns targeted at today's youth, but very little in terms of educating minors on the negative impacts of smokeless tobacco. The focus of this article is educate CLL players and parents on what smokeless tobacco is, and what some of the harmful side effects are.
There are many different names for smokeless tobacco. Some of them are: dip, chew, chewing tobacco, and snuff. There are also different forms of the product. Tins of chew are hockey puck sized, and contain ground up tobacco leaves meant for sniffing or placing between the cheek and gum. Pouches of tobacco are bags of shredded and twisted tobacco leaves meant to be chewed like gum. Both products contain NUMEROUS cancer-causing agents, and are HIGHLY addictive. Similar to cigarettes, smokeless tobacco contains nicotine, however it isn't widely known that one dip can contain up to 5 times the amount of nicotine that one cigarette has, making it potentially MORE addictive than smoking!
There are at least 28 known carcinogens in smokeless tobacco, most of which are nitrosamines like: Nitrosodimethylamine, and 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-l-butanone (NNK), but also contains inorganic compounds like arsenic, cadmium and polonium! It has often been thought that smokeless tobacco is a safe alternative to smoking, however this is NOT the case. The chemicals found in chewing tobacco can cause cancer in the mouth, gums, throat, stomach and lungs, and can also stain your teeth, cause bad breath, and raise blood pressure, JUST like cigarettes.
Other known additives to smokeless tobacco are extreme concentrations of sodium (used in the drying process) and high levels of sugars added for flavour. Tobacco companies have also been blamed for adding abrasives such as fibreglass and/or sand to cause tiny cuts in the user's gums to allow for increased nicotine absorption!
So why does anyone use chewing tobacco?! Does it improve performance? The answer is no... Players use because they are addicted. Studies have shown that using dip or chew does NOT improve a ball player's performance, reaction times or overall abilities on the field. Actually, it has been proven to do the opposite. Users have a decreased ability to perform complex tasks, and learn new skills. They experience an increased heart rate, and may have a decreased ability to focus.
If you or someone you know uses smokeless tobacco, here are some of the danger signs that must be reported immediately!
a sore in the mouth that does not heal
a small lump or white patch on the cheek or gum
prolonged sore throat
difficulty chewing/restricted movement of the tongue
recessed gums
When all is said and done, remember this: Coquitlam Little League, and Little League International have established a ZERO-tolerance policy for any and all tobacco products at our fields. Smokeless tobacco is prohibited on the field by players and coaches, and parents are discouraged from using these products while at the park. Furthermore, the City of Coquitlam has passed a bylaw prohibiting smoking in all public areas including parks, so we kindly ask parents and coaches to refrain from smoking at the park as well.
For more information on the facts of chewing tobacco please visit the US National Cancer Institute (http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/tobacco/smokeless-tobacco).
