Prevalence of spit tobacco use across studies of professional baseball players

Abstract

A review of published data, together with previously unpublished information, shows that the use of spit tobacco among professional baseball players continues to be alarmingly high. In spite of efforts to make players aware of the harmful effects, approximately 35 percent to 40 percent of professional baseball players still use spit tobacco, and about half of those have associated lesions. However, current efforts of the National Spit Tobacco Education Program, Major League Baseball, the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society and the Major League Baseball Players Association are expected to result in a significant reduction in spit tobacco use in this population in the next decade.