How Long Before Cigarettes Go Stale?

If you’re smoking cigarettes regularly, you probably know how they taste and feel upon purchasing them. Most of the time, after all, smokers like you would buy a pack of cigarettes and smoke them as soon as possible. But, what if you didn’t smoke them right away?

A lot of questions may start to creep into your mind. Do cigarettes expire? Do your smokes go stale after not lighting them up for a long time? Is it okay to smoke stale cigarettes?

These are only some of the questions that this helpful blog from NativeSmokes4Less will cover. We’ll discover how long before a pack of cigarettes goes stale, whether you can smoke stale cigarettes, and if smoking them can make you sick. Sit tight and we got you covered.

How Long Before a Pack of Cigarettes Goes Stale?

Whenever you buy fresh cigarettes from your favourite retailer or online seller, the very first thing that a lot of cigarette smokers would do is check the packaging. The packaging of cigarettes typically tells users if the smokes still boast good quality. Without checking it, you might end up with cigarettes that are already stale or have deteriorated already.

But how can you check if the cigarettes are already stale just by looking at their packaging?

As we all know, cigarettes don’t often display expiration dates on their respective packs or boxes. The tobacco industry is highly aware of this provision since the World Health Organization (WHO) prohibits cigarette manufacturers from displaying the said date. WHO claims that displaying the expiration date will only mislead consumers into thinking that cigarettes are safe to consume at any time before the said date.

The only date you will spot on the tobacco packaging of cigarettes is the date of manufacture. The manufacturing or production date of the cigarettes is displayed in the packaging to let you know that the tobacco products can last for another year or two, granted that you store them optimally.

The manufacturing date may be displayed through a Julian Date Code, a production code used by many manufacturers. Often printed on the bottom of the pack, it often comes with 5 digits, where the first 2 numbers signifying the year and the last 3 digits indicating the day of the year the pack was produced.

For instance, your pack has a code that reads 24324. The first 2 digits indicate the year of production, which is 2024. The last 3 digits, 324, indicate the day of the year the pack was manufactured. The 324th day of the year is November 19. So, this means that the cigarette pack was produced on November 19th of the year 2024.

Now, if you won’t be opening this cigarette pack, it often stays fresh for up to 2 years after its manufacturing date. So, if you just received an unopened cigarette pack one year from its manufacturing date, you can still smoke the cigarettes without any worries.

How about cigarette packs that are already open? Do they expire right away?

The answer is still no. However, keep in mind that cigarettes from an opened pack may start to lose their quality and eventually go stale. Generally, tobacco loses its moisture when exposed to air. With an opened cigarette pack, you can expect the cigarettes to lose their flavour and go stale after 2 days.

Can You Smoke Stale Cigarettes?

Cigarette manufacturers often promise a lot of things when selling their respective smokes. Many of them would advertise their tobacco products as flavourful, satisfying to puff, and many more. But despite the promises they share, cigarettes will generally go stale once consumers open the pack.

The shelf life of cigarettes tends to degrade very quickly as soon as you break the seal and open the cigarette packaging. It is also the main reason why many smokers are keen on emptying their pack of cigarettes in just a day or two to make sure they can take advantage of the soothing aroma, flavour, and hits of the smokes, similar to what cigarette makers have promised.

But not all smokers can empty out a pack of cigarettes in just a couple of days. Some cigarette smokers only light up these products occasionally, which means the cigarettes on their opened pack might last longer than the stated days that they go stale.

How can you tell that your cigarettes are already stale? Some things you can do to check if your cigarettes are stale are as follows:

• Do a smell test: Place your cigarette under your nose and inhale. If your cigarette smells plain, it means it is stale already. A fresh cigarette typically has a sweet, earthy scent. If it has a menthol flavour, it should have a minty odour.
• Taste the cigarette: You don’t need to light and smoke it to check its taste. The only thing you need to do is place one end of the cigarette in your mouth. If it has become bitter and boasts an unpleasant flavor, it means it is already stale.
• Pinch the cigarette: Hold the cigarette between your fingers and press it down lightly. If the cigarette feels brittle or hard, it has gone stale. It has also become stale if some tobacco bits come out at the end of the cigarette. 
• Check for spots: The last thing you need to do is check for any brown or yellow spots on the cigarette. When tobacco is exposed to air, the cigarette may lose its moisture. It may then develop coloured spots as the oils and other chemicals in the tobacco leak through the cigarette paper.

Since you already know whether your cigarettes have gone stale or not, it’s time to know if you can light up and smoke them. Fortunately, the answer is yes. Even with a slightly compromised flavour and quality, stale cigarettes can still be smoked.

The only thing you might need to expect when smoking stale cigarettes is they are not as flavourful as promised. They likewise burn out more quickly than fresh cigarettes. Given how they change in quality, it is highly recommended to only smoke fresh cigarettes. 

But if the stale cigarettes are producing a strong, musty odour, have become dry and brittle, or are showing white, green, or blue spots, it means you cannot smoke them anymore. You should also not continue smoking cigarettes that taste sour, bitter, or unusually harsh.

So, if you just received an unopened pack of cigarettes and don’t plan on consuming them right away, it’s best that you store them first properly.

Can Stale Cigarettes Make You Sick?

Cigarettes are produced by a wide variety of brands, with tons of flavours available for users like you to choose from. If you want to replace your old packs with new ones, you can buy them from us at NativeSmokes4Less. We are an online retailer that sells a bunch of high-quality cigarettes from different reputable cigarette brands. Upon receiving them, it’s important that you store them properly.

Retaining the quality of cigarettes can be done in many ways.

• Retain the original packaging: The original packaging of your smokes is intended to keep them fresh. If you won’t be smoking them anytime soon, it’s best to keep them sealed. Now, if you’ve already opened the pack, you can reseal it tightly to prevent the entry of air. You can also use a rubber band to keep the pack sealed tightly once its adhesive loses its stickiness.
• Use airtight containers: If you’ve decided to take out the cigarettes from their original packaging, you should transfer them right away to airtight containers. You must opt for containers made from glass or plastic and boast a secure seal to dry out the tobacco elements of the cigarettes. Upon transferring the cigarettes to the containers, keep them away from direct sunlight.
• Maximize a humidor: Often used to place cigars, a humidor can also be used to store cigarettes. A humidor is a specially designed container that can maintain the humidity level of tobacco products, which is often around 65 to 70%. Just make sure that it is wiped thoroughly with a damp cloth and maintains the optimal humidity levels for proper storage of the cigarettes.

Regardless of how meticulous you are in storing cigarettes, there will be a point in time when you need to take them out from their respective storage spaces. And if you don’t track the days of your cigarettes being left out of storage, you will certainly end up losing their flavour and quality. At this point, you don’t have a choice but to smoke them even if they go stale.

The last question that you might have in mind would be whether smoking stale cigarettes can cause any health problems or not. Unfortunately, smoking these cigarettes, especially those that are exposed to too much oxygen and other elements in the surroundings, only puts you at risk of getting sick.

As cigarettes age, chemicals in the tobacco break down. When they are exposed to air for a long time, it could change their overall composition, generating harsher smoke that can gradually irritate your throat and lungs. Stale cigarettes can likewise cause coughs, headaches, and nausea.

Alternatively, stale cigarettes that have been exposed to moisture or stored in humid conditions for a long time may lead to the development of moulds or bacteria. Smoking these cigarettes may put you at risk of developing respiratory issues, allergic reactions, and nausea as you inhale their smoke.

The potency of stale cigarettes likewise degrades over time. As an effect, you tend to smoke more cigarettes just to feel the effect of nicotine. This then increases your exposure to harmful chemicals due to inhaling tobacco smoke.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take for a cigarette to stale?

A cigarette starts to lose its freshness after two days of being left unsealed. Once exposed to air, the tobacco will gradually lose its quality and moisture, compromising its overall taste and burn quality.

How long does cigarette tobacco stay fresh?

The tobacco content of a cigarette can stay fresh for around two years from its manufacturing date as long as it is left in an unopened pack and stored in cool, dry conditions. Once opened, it begins to dry out after two days, gradually losing its moisture and flavour.

How to make stale cigarettes fresh again?

To make stale cigarettes fresh again, you can place them in a sealed container with a slightly damp paper towel, a loaf of bread, or an orange peel for a few hours. You can also rehydrate and make them fresh again by storing them in a humidor or any place with a humid environment. These techniques, however, won’t fully recover their original quality.

Summary

Cigarettes do not expire. Instead, they go stale, especially if they have already been exposed to air or moisture for a long time. At this point in time, the only things you can do are to smoke them and endure their lack of flavour, rehydrate them to lessen their harshness, or throw them away.

If you don’t want to compromise your health with stale cigarettes, it would be better if you quit smoking entirely. There are plenty of alternatives to cigarettes that are deemed less harmful and tend to last longer. Check them out here to know more.