A trade group for Idaho dentists want the Idaho Legislature to raise tobacco taxes this session, the group announced Wednesday.

Idaho has one of the lowest cigarette taxes in the U.S., the Idaho State Dental Association said.

"By keeping the price of tobacco products so low, we encourage behavior that damages thousands of lives while costing us millions of wasted dollars," said Gregory Bengtson, the association's president.

The group said tobacco use costs Idaho $319 million a year in health care-related costs.

Bengtson said smokeless tobacco, or chewing tobacco, is "one of the greatest threats to dental health of young people."

That kind of tobacco is shown to cause the mouth disease leukoplakia in more than half of users within the first three years, and oral lesions in 60 to 78 percent of users, the association said.

Smokeless tobacco increases the risk of oral cancer and cancer of the esophagus, pharynx, larynx, stomach and pancreas, the group said. It also is linked to tooth decay, gingivitis and root surface decay.

For every 10 percent increase in cigarette prices, youth smoking goes down 6.5 percent and overall cigarette use by 4 percent, the association said.