The consumption of rolling tobacco has increased by 60 percent in 2010 and up to 200 percent since 2007 in Spain due to factors such as the economic crisis or the anti-smoking law. Its consumers prefer it because it is cheaper and because it is believed to be less harmful and addictive than conventional cigarettes. However, the Spanish Society of Pulmonology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR) warns that this product is "at least as harmful to health as manufactured tobacco" and causes greater addiction .
SEPAR bases its claim on an analysis of different studies published in the publication Archives of Bronconeumology , which indicates that rolling tobacco contains up to 22 percent additives, compared to 10 percent additives in manufacturing.
Compared with manufactured tobacco, rolling tobacco is more prevalent in young men, with fewer economic resources, married or with a partner, and with a lower educational level. These smokers are more dependent on nicotine, have less motivation to quit, and believe that rolling tobacco is less harmful.
