>Michael,
>There are thousands of scenarios that lead to illness and eventually death. The special thing with smoking is that the only factor is tobacco. That's easy to understand, not only for the scientists, but also for the other people. The factors you mention with regard to diabetes are far less simple to understand. I'm sure that people in the future will not think of us as foolish people. :)

While tobacco is an obvious factor, it's not the only one. There is the paper which wraps the tobacco, the filter, and potentially even something from the match used to light the cigarette. They are minor factors, no doubt, but factors none-the-less.