Adverse health effects of cigarette smoke: aldehydes Crotonaldehyde, butyraldehyde, hexanal and malonaldehyde

Crotonaldehyde in cigarette smoke can be concluded to induce airway damage in humans. This is one conclusion derived from the existing data found in the literature and reported here in the discussion on adverse health effects and possible addictive effects due to the exposure of crotonaldehyde, butyraldehyde, hexanal and malonaldehyde in cigarette smoke. A previous RIVM report focused on acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, acrolein and propionaldehyde. Due to limited available data, it is not clear whether butyraldehyde, hexanal, and malonaldehyde in cigarette smoke induce similar damage. The exposure due to inhalation of the above-mentioned aldehydes in combination with each other or with other aldehydes remains a point of concern. In addition, it is not known whether sugars and glycerol additives in tobacco affect the concentration of aldehydes in cigarette smoke. For a proper risk assessment, further research on combined exposure and the contribution of added ingredients to the aldehyde concentration in cigarette smoke is necessary