(e.g. parlors and passenger cars). The purpose of the spittoon was to provide a receptacle for excess juices and spittle accumulated from the oral use of tobacco. As chewing tobacco's popularity declined throughout the years, the spittoon became merely a relic of the Old West and is rarely seen outside museums. Spittoons are still present on the floor of the U.S. Senate's old chamber, honored as tradition. Types Chewing tobacco is sold in several different varieties. Loose-leaf Loose-leaf chewing tobacco is the most widely available and most frequently used type of chewing tobacco. It consists of shredded tobacco leaf, usually sweetened and sometimes flavored, and often sold in a sealed pouch typically weighing 3 oz. Loose-leaf chewing tobacco has a sticky texture due to the sweeteners added. Common loose-leaf chewing tobacco brands include Red Man, Levi Garrett, Beech-Nut, and Stoker's. Plug Plug chewing tobacco is tobacco leaves pressed into a square, brick-like mass called a plug. From this, pieces are bitten off or cut from the plug and then chewed. Plug tobacco is declining in popularity, thus less readily available than loose-leaf chewing tobacco. Historically, plug tobacco could be either smoked in a pipe or chewed, but today, these are two distinct products. Twist Twist chewing tobacco consists of leaves twisted together into a rope-like mass. Unlike most loose-leaf tobaccos, twist chewing tobacco is usually not sweetened. Pieces of twist are either bitten off or cut, and then chewed. Twist chewing tobacco is not widely available and is mostly found in Appalachia. Historically, twists could also be smoked in a pipe, or ground up into nasal snuff. Health issues Oral and spit tobacco increase the risk for leukoplakia, a precursor to oral cancer. Chewing tobacco has been known to cause cancer, particularly of the mouth and throat. According to International Agency for Research on Cancer, "Some health scientists have suggested that smokeless tobacco should be used in smoking cessation programs and have made implicit or explicit claims that its use would partly reduce the exposure of smokers to carcinogens and the risk for cancer. These claims, however, are not supported by the available evidence. Chewing tobacco and baseball When the rules of baseball were first written in 1845, the carcinogenic potential of chewing tobacco was unknown. At that time, it was commonly used by players and coaches alike. Smokeless tobacco use became rampant by players by the early 1900s. The