Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 7 
smoking cigarettes having more than 5 mg of tar, between 56 and 74 percent 
either did not know that a 5-mg tar cigarette was lower in tar than most other 
cigarettes or said that it was not lower (with 10 to 20 percent incorrect). 
SMOKERS' Two approaches were used to better understand how smokers 
INTERPRETATIONS interpreted the advertised tar numbers. In the first, half the 
OF TAR NUMBERS sample members were asked whether a pack-a-day smoker could 
significantly lower his or her health risks due to smoking by switching from 
a 20-mg tar cigarette to a 5-mg tar cigarette; for the other half, the switch 
was to a 16-mg tar cigarette. In total, 56 percent of smokers thought that a 
switch to a 5-mg tar cigarette would significantly lower health risks, whereas 
28 percent thought that a switch to a 16-mg tar cigarette would significantly 
lower health risks. 
Table 3 cross-tabulates answers to these questions against the actual tar 
levels of smokers' cigarettes. For the substantive shift to a 5-mg cigarette, 
light-to-heavy tar cigarette smokers are evenly divided between believing 
there would be a significant reduction in health risks and either believing 
this would not be the case or being unsure about this. Whereas more than 
60 percent of smokers did not think switching to a 16-mg tar cigarette would 
lead to a significant reduction in health risks due to smoking, a sizable 
proportion of light-to-heavy tar cigarette smokers either thought it would 
or did not know. 
Table 3 
Inferences (percent) about health risks as a result of switching to lower tar cigarettes 
Tar Levels (mg) 
Inference 
Very Low 
1-5 
Low 
6-10 
Medium 
11-15 
High 
16+ 
Cannot 
Determine 
Switching From a 20-mg to a 5-mg Tar Cigarette 
Would Significantly Reduce Health Risks 
83 
49 
49 
55 
60 
Switching From a 20-mg to a 5-mg Tar Cigarette 
Would Not Significantly Reduce Health Risks 
13 
32 
35 
25 
29 
Do Not Know 
4 
19 
15 
20 
12 
Switching From a 20-mg to a 16-mg Tar Cigarette 
Would Significantly Reduce Health Risks 
18 
35 
28 
25 
33 
Switching From a 20-mg to a 16-mg Tar Cigarette 
Would Not Significantly Reduce Health Risks 
68 
61 
61 
61 
37 
Do Not Know 
14 
4 
10 
14 
31 
Relative Difference in Health Risks Between Those 
Asked About Switching to a 5-mg and Those 
Asked About Switching to a 16-mg Tar Cigarette 
65 
14 
21 
30 
27 
