United States to drastically reduce nicotine content in cigarettes to reduce premature deaths
The United States is set to announce a new policy requiring cigarette producers to reduce nicotine to non-addictive levels, a move that would deal a powerful blow to the tobacco industry, as reported by AFP on Tuesday.
If successful, the policy could save millions of lives by the end of the century, and shape a future where cigarettes are no longer responsible for addiction and debilitating diseases.
Nicotine is the “feel good” chemical that hooks millions to tobacco products. Thousands of other chemicals contained in tobacco and its smoke are responsible for diseases such as cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung diseases, diabetes and more.
Though smoking is less prevalent in the United States than in Europe and has been declining for years, it is still responsible for 480,000 deaths a year in the country, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Some 13.7 per cent of all US adults are current cigarette smokers, according to CDC data.
Reducing the nicotine content of cigarettes has been a topic under discussion for years among US authorities.
