Ahead of Science on Tobacco?

By Dirk Anderson, last updated Nov. 2025

Seventh-day Adventists [SDAs] claim their that prophetess—Ellen White—was decades ahead of science in pointing out the dangers of tobacco.¹ But was she really breaking new ground? Or was she simply echoing a chorus that had already been shouting for centuries? Long before her vision, doctors, pastors, reformers, and even her own Methodist tradition were warning that tobacco was poisonous, addictive, and morally degrading. Ellen White wasn’t ahead of her time; she was surrounded by it.

Ellen White on Tobacco

Mrs. White's earliest statement on tobacco was written in a letter in 1851:

I have seen in vision that tobacco was a filthy weed, and that it must be laid aside or given up. Said my accompanying angel, "If it is an idol it is high time it was given up, and unless it is given up the frown of God will be upon the one that uses it, and he cannot be sealed with the seal of the living God." If it is used as a medicine, go to God, He is the great Physician, and those that use the filthy weed for medicine greatly dishonor God.²

In this letter, Mrs. White and her spirit guide go beyond the Bible and elevate tobacco usage to a sin that is on the same level as idolatry. Tobacco users have God frowning down on them and they must stop or else they will not receive the Seal of God.

Echoing the Insights of Others

Believers in Mrs. White point to this statement—along with her later statements regarding tobacco—and insist she was a blessing to Seventh-day Adventists because she was "ahead of her time." They credit her knowledge to divine insight. The truth is, some in the medical community had been warning of the dire consequences of tobacco use for hundreds of years before Mrs. White penned her letter. Below is a brief selection of statements made by various medical and religious authors before 1851:

1603 - "...the injurious nature of tobacco. ... The brain must needs be oppressed and infected by the horrible and poisonous smoke of tobacco..."³

1626 - Tobacco "endangereth the child to become brain damaged or of imperfect memory."⁴

1653 - "Blood and brain become heated and dried up—the whole head is turned into a noxious furnace—it is fatal to all genius [and acts] to dull the finest intellect."⁵

1798 - Benjamin Rush, M.D. wrote an entire section on the dangers of tobacco use in his book Essays, Literary, Moral and Philosophical.

1833 - Rev. Orin S. Fowler published his book Disquisition on the Evils of Using Tobacco.

1836 - "...thousands and tens of thousands die of diseases of the lungs generally brought on by tobacco smoking. . . . How is it possible to be otherwise? Tobacco is a poison."⁶

1845 - Rev. Benjamin I. Lane published his book The Mysteries of Tobacco.

1848 - John Burdell, M.D., published his book Tobacco: Its Use and Abuse.

1849 - Joel Shew, M.D., published his book Tobacco: Its History, Nature, and Effects on the Body and Mind.

Furthermore, the anti-tobacco crusade began in earnest in the United States in the 1830s, as noted by historian Ruth Clifford Engs:

From the 1830s until the Civil War, health reformers operated on the thesis that tobacco was a deadly poison. In an effort to encourage individuals to quit, or not start its use, reformers portrayed the disgusting figures of tobacco chewers as intemperate, physically ill, and morally depraved. In 1849, as the result of reformers' increasing concern over tobacco, and in conscious imitation of temperance efforts, the American Anti-tobacco Society was organized.

Many health reformers of the day discussed the health consequences of tobacco. Edward Hitchcock, of Amherst College, considered tobacco and alcohol to be dangerous substances even when used moderately; he believed they caused moral deterioration and inherited weakness. Alcott regarded the use of tobacco as evil for similar reasons. Caleb Ticknor, a physician, deemed tobacco 'the most deadly, most noxious poison,' and considered it addictive. Larkin Coles, a Seventh-Day Adventist minister and physician, suggested tobacco did far more damage than alcohol to the health and welfare of Americans. Joel Shew, a hydropathic physician, published a tract listing 87 diseases cause by tobacco, the first being insanity and the last cancer.⁷

Thus, in the years leading up to Mrs. White's vision on tobacco, numerous medical and religious leaders were already vociferously warning Christians of the dangers of tobacco. Some churches even banned its use. For example, the church that Mrs. White was raised in—the Methodist Church—forbid its members from using tobacco before Ellen Harmon was born:

The Methodists forbad the use of Tobacco in the infancy of their society. The prohibition discovered a high and just sense of the self-denial, decency, and universal civility which are required by the gospel.⁸

Of special interest is the Adventist preacher-physician Dr. Larkin B. Coles. Mrs. White would later copy profusely from his health writings, and there is little doubt that she was familiar with his writings. In fact, two of his books, Philosophy of Health, and the Beauties and Deformities of Tobacco-Using were in her personal library. In his 1851 book Philosophy of Health, he referred to tobacco as "poisonous", "filthy narcotic", and "deadly weed."⁹ In The Beauties and Deformities of Tobacco-Using (first published in 1851), Coles has a whole chapter decrying the use of tobacco as a medicine, calling doctors who prescribe it "quacks."¹⁰ Throughout the book, in words reminiscent of Sister Whites', he describes tobacco as an "idol", a "poisonous weed", and "filthy".¹¹

Finally, one must consider the influence of Joseph Bates upon Mrs. White's beliefs. Bates was a close associate of the Whites in the 1840s. He opposed tobacco, having given it up himself in 1821.

So then, where did Ellen White get her information on the dangers of tobacco? Was it from her Methodist upbringing? Was it from her close associate Joseph Bates? Was it from Dr. Coles, from whom she plagiarized rampantly? Or was it from any of the many anti-tobacco crusaders of her day? No one knows. What is known is that many in the Christian churches of the United States and many medical professionals, including some Adventists, had jumped on the anti-tobacco crusade and were speaking out against the dangers of tobacco long before Ellen White joined in. Thus, she had ample opportunity to obtain her message from them.

God Frowns on Using Tobacco as a Medicine?

Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) was introduced to Europe following Columbus’s voyages, initially as an exotic ornamental plant, but quickly adopted by physicians for its powerful pharmacological effects. For centuries, it was considered a valuable addition to the European pharmacopeia, prescribed widely until the mid-19th century—before better alternatives were discovered. While some of its uses where unhelpful or even downright dangerous, other uses of tobacco were found to be beneficial.

Analgesia and Sedation (Pain Management)

Conditions Treated: Toothache, earache, gout, rheumatism, and general pain (analgesic).

Mechanism: Tobacco was known to numb pain and induce a feeling of tranquility, which doctors attributed to its "stupefying" or "narcotic" qualities. This was, in fact, the effect of nicotine acting as a strong nervous system depressant in high doses.

Application: Tobacco smoke or oil extracts were applied directly to the painful area, or patients were instructed to smoke until they felt sedation.

Effect: Nicotine is a potent psychoactive compound and analgesic. At moderate doses, it can release neurotransmitters like dopamine (producing pleasure/calm) and endorphins (natural painkillers). Therefore, patients genuinely experienced a reduction in pain perception and relaxation when using tobacco, making its use for pain relief functionally valid at the time.

Skin Conditions and Wound Care (Antiseptic/Poultice)

Conditions Treated: Insect bites, ringworm, and lice (pediculosis).

Mechanism: The caustic nature of the tobacco extract and its bitter taste were believed to act as a powerful antiseptic and insecticide. The nicotine content was effective against external parasites.

Application: Tobacco leaves were ground into a wet poultice (a soft, moist mass) and applied directly to the skin. Tobacco juice was also used as a topical wash.

Effect: Nicotine is a highly effective, natural insecticide/pesticide. In large quantities, nicotine is neurotoxic to insects and parasites. Applying a tobacco poultice was effective at killing lice, fleas, and ringworm. For topical parasite control, the efficacy was scientifically sound.

Extra-Biblical Conditions

Mrs. claimed that using the "filthy weed" as a "medicine" greatly dishonors God. This is in direct opposition to the Word of God. Scripture consistently allows—and sometimes commends—the wise use of natural remedies. A plain reading of the Bible shows God’s people employing oils, wines, and plants as part of ordinary care, not as a dishonor to God.

• Practical healing with natural substances: Luke 10:34 — the Good Samaritan treats wounds with oil and wine (natural substances used as antiseptics and dressings): “he bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine.” This is presented as the compassionate, sensible response, not as sinful or dishonoring.

• Use of plants and poultices: 2 Kings 20:7 — Isaiah prescribes a lump of figs as a poultice for King Hezekiah’s boil, and the king recovers. The narrative treats the remedy as a legitimate means of healing under prophetic oversight.

• Physicians are acknowledged as necessary and useful: Jeremiah 8:22 — “Is there no balm in Gilead?” The lament presumes the existence and value of balm (a medicinal resin) as means of healing.
• Medicinal wine: 1 Timothy 5:23 — Paul’s practical advice, “Use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities,” shows apostolic approval of medicinal use of common substances.

Conclusion: To say that using a natural substance “as a medicine greatly dishonours God” conflicts with multiple Biblical examples and teachings. The Bible presents prudent use of remedies and natural substances as legitimate means by which God preserves and restores life. A proper Christian position recognizes the moral and spiritual dangers of addiction and abuse, but it also recognizes the biblical warrant for using sensible remedies and physicians in sickness.

Mrs. White's teachings not only conflict with the Bible, but they also defy the following principal found in her later writings:

He has supplied in the natural world remedies for the ills of man, that His followers may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. We can with safety discard the concoctions which man has used in the past. The Lord has provided antidotes for disease in simple plants, and these can be used by faith, with no denial of faith; for by using the blessings provided by God for our benefit we are co-operating with Him.¹²

Defies Biblical Teachings

Mrs. White claimed that unless tobacco was given up, the user “cannot be sealed with the seal of the living God.” Scripture never ties the sealing of God to abstaining from a specific, extrabiblical substance. The New Testament consistently grounds the seal of God in faith in Christ and the indwelling Holy Spirit—not in dietary or behavioral rules invented outside Scripture.

• The seal is received at faith, not at quitting a habit: Ephesians 1:13 — “When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.” The apostle Paul ties sealing directly to hearing the gospel and believing it. No added condition, such as abstaining from a particular substance, is ever mentioned.

• The seal is shown by spiritual fruit, not by abstaining from a non-biblical substance: Galatians 5:22–23 — The evidence of the Spirit’s presence is “love, joy, peace, patience…” The biblical “mark” of God’s work in a life is moral transformation, not the absence of a specific habit unknown to Scripture.

• Salvation is grounded in grace, not in meeting extra requirements: Ephesians 2:8–9 — “By grace you have been saved through faith… not of works.” Making the rejection of tobacco a requirement for sealing introduces a works-based condition that Scripture repeatedly rejects.

• Condemning believers for non-biblical prohibitions is forbidden: Colossians 2:20–23 — Paul warns against man-made regulations: “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” Such rules “have an appearance of wisdom” but are human commandments, not divine requirements.

• No biblical precedent for tying sealing to abstinence from substances: Acts 15 — The Jerusalem Council refused to burden believers with unnecessary requirements, even rejecting the imposition of Old Testament ceremonial laws upon Gentiles. If the apostles refused to impose extra-biblical restrictions, attaching salvation consequences to tobacco—a product not even known in biblical times—is entirely without scriptural warrant.

Conclusion: The Bible teaches that believers receive the seal of the Holy Spirit upon faith in Christ, and that this seal is evidenced by godly character and spiritual fruit. To declare that God withholds His seal from those who use tobacco is to elevate an extrabiblical rule above the gospel itself. While Christians should pursue wise stewardship of their health and avoid addiction, making abstinence from tobacco a prerequisite for salvation or the final sealing stands in direct contradiction to the teaching of the New Testament.

Greater Insight on Tobacco than Others?

Some have cited the quote below as proof of supernatural insight into the workings of nicotine that went beyond the anti-tobacco protestors of her day:

Tobacco is a poison of the most deceitful and malignant kind, having an exciting, then a paralyzing influence upon the nerves of the body. It is all the more dangerous because its effects upon the system are so slow, and at first scarcely perceivable. . . .¹³

However, it is apparent her 1864 statement was plagiarized from John Gunn's statement in 1861:

[Tobacco is] a poison of a most deceitful and malignant kind, that sends its exciting and paralyzing influence into every nerve of the body.¹⁴

It is also possible she plagiarized from L.B. Coles, who, in 1853, wrote essentially the same in his book, The Beauties and Deformities of Tobacco-Using:

...there is found the deadly narcotic power of this poison, sending its exciting and paralyzing influence into every never of the body.¹⁵

One seeming misfortune about this pernicious habit....is, it remains so long doing its fatal work without being perceived.¹⁶

Therefore, it appears her "insight" into pharmacology likely came from books written long before Spiritual Gifts volume 4a. Thus, there is no evidence Ellen White received divine inspiration that put her "ahead of her time" in regards to the dangers of tobacco. If SDAs have anyone to thank for warning them of tobacco, it would be Joseph Bates and L.B. Coles.

Conclusion

When placed back into their historical context, Ellen White’s claims about tobacco lose every trace of prophetic originality. Far from receiving advanced light from heaven, she was simply repeating what medical reformers, Methodist leaders, and even her own Adventist colleagues had already been proclaiming for decades—sometimes in language she conveniently borrowed.

So was she ahead of her time? Hardly. The world had already condemned tobacco as poisonous, filthy, addictive, and morally corrupt long before she had her “vision.” The only remarkable feature of her testimony is how closely it resembles the books sitting on her shelf.

In the end, her followers may continue calling her insight miraculous, but history shows it was just well-timed plagiarism dressed up as prophecy.