Reducing Nicotine in Tobacco Products; a Game Changer
Reducing Nicotine in Tobacco Products Would Be a Game Changer
Reducing Nicotine to Non-Addictive Levels
Reducing nicotine to non-addictive levels in cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products would fulfill a major promise inherent in the Tobacco Control Act to save millions of lives and is why Congress gave FDA the authority to reduce nicotine levels in tobacco products to any amount above zero. Once finalized, this rule could be a game changer in our nation’s efforts to eliminate tobacco use.
Making tobacco products non-addictive would dramatically reduce the number of young people who become hooked when they are experimenting. To fully address the toll of tobacco on our nation’s health and across all communities, it is critical to reduce nicotine levels to non-addictive levels in all commercial tobacco products, including e-cigarettes. The Lung Association looks forward to reviewing the proposed rule and providing comments to FDA.
The American Lung Association stated:
"We also note with concern, and some frustration, that there are no FDA approved nicotine cessation medications for youth. The e-cigarette epidemic has created a new generation of youth nicotine users for which clinicians have no highly effective pharmaceutical interventions. While the harms of long-term e-cigarette use are yet to be fully described, pulmonary physicians continue to see cases of severe lung disease caused by e-cigarette use – including cases unrelated to vitamin E-acetate, the main cause of the spike in cases during the 2019 E-Cigarette, or Vaping Product, Use Associated Lung Injury or EVALI crisis."
