Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
A menthol cigarette is a cigarette infused with the compound menthol which imparts a “minty” flavor to the smoke. Menthol also decreases irritant sensations from nicotine by desensitizing receptors, making smoking feel less harsh compared to regular cigarettes.
The menthol flavoring in cigarettes creates greater nicotine dependence by enhancing the effects of nicotine on the brain, therefore making it more addictive, according to the CDC.
He argued that menthol cigarettes contain higher nicotine and tar levels than non-menthol cigarettes. Brown claimed menthol encourages deeper and longer inhalation of tobacco smoke, increasing addictive properties of the cigarette and decreasing the lung's ability to rid itself of carcinogenic components of smoke.
The surgeon general's report cited 2023 research that projected a nationwide ban on the sale and marketing of menthol cigarettes would prevent up to 654,000 deaths in the next four decades.
People who smoke menthol cigarettes are less likely than nonmenthol smokers to quit successfully, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Black Americans are affected most.
About 10.1 million Americans started smoking because of menthol cigarettes between 1980 and 2018, and 378,000 people died prematurely, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Menthol cigarettes, which make it easier to start smoking and harder to quit, are a major contributor to these fatalities. To tobacco companies, that’s time well spent.
A ban on menthol would save the lives of thousands of North Carolinians, says a group of doctors and researchers