Menthol cigarette

A menthol cigarette is a cigarette flavored with the compound menthol, a substance which triggers the cold-sensitive nerves in the skin without actually providing a drop in temperature.

Menthol cigarettes have also been shown to inhibit nicotine metabolism, causing "systemic enhancement in exposure to nicotine".^[1]

Origins

Menthol cigarettes were first developed by Lloyd “Spud” Hughes in 1925, though the idea did not become popular until the Axton-Fisher Tobacco Company acquired the patent in 1927, marketing them nationwide as "Spud Menthol Cooled Cigarettes". Spud brand menthol cigarettes went on to become the 5th most popular brand in the U.S. by 1932 ^[2], and it remained the only menthol cigarette on the market until the Brown & Williamson Tobacco Company created the Kool brand in 1933. R.J. Reynolds Company launched the first menthol filter-tip cigarettes in 1950 under the Salem brand.^[2] In the United States, brands include:Newports, Marlboro Menthol, American Spirits Menthol, Misty, Consulate, Pall Mall Menthol and Camel Menthol, Camel Crush. In the UK there are a number of cigarette brands who sell menthol variants, such as: Lambert & Butler, John Player & Sons, Sterling, Mayfair, and Richmond.

Use and popularity

According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's 2006 Cigarette Report, menthol cigarettes constitute 20% of the American market, down from 27% from 2002-2005^[3]. Additionally, menthol cigarettes are purchased disproportionately by African-American smokers, with 80% of African-American smokers consuming menthol cigarettes primarily.^[4][5]

A 2008 study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration indicates that 33.9 percent of smokers use menthol cigarettes, compared to 31 percent in 2004. Much of the increase comes from young people.^[6]

Regulation

Although the use of menthol in ointments and cough drops is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States of America, regulation of cigarettes was removed from their purview in 2000 by the Supreme Court in a 5-4 ruling, FDA v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. ^[7] In October 2009, the United States Congress passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which gave the FDA the authority to regulate tobacco products and ban flavor additives, although the act contained an exception for menthol.

On March 18, 2011 the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (an advisory panel to the FDA) concluded that removing menthol cigarettes from the market would benefit public health in the United States, but stopped short of recommending that the Food and Drug Administration take any specific actions, like restricting or banning the additive.^[8] In response, the tobacco industry released a report to the FDA claiming menthol cigarettes are no riskier than regular cigarettes and should not be regulated differently. ^[9]

A progress report on panel findings is expected from the FDA in July 2011.^[8]

Opposition to proposed ban

Several minority groups have voiced opposition to a proposed ban on menthol in cigarettes. The Congress of Racial Equality, the National Black Chamber of Commerce, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, and the National Black Police Association have urged the FDA to reject a ban on mentholated cigarettes due to concerns that banning mentholated cigarettes could spur an illicit market for the outlawed products in minority communities.^{[10] [11] [12]} Groups representing law enforcement officers also oppose the ban. The Law Enforcement Alliance of America and the National Troopers Coalition have urged the FDA to consider the impact a ban on menthol cigarettes would have on tobacco smuggling.^[13]

The proposed menthol ban also saw opposition from organized labor. In December 2010, workers from the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union protested outside a meeting between FDA officials and industry representatives in Raleigh, NC, arguing that a menthol ban would cost many workers their jobs.^[14]

Additionally, the National Association of Convenience Stores opposes the ban based on menthol cigarettes accounting for 4% of their sales.^[15]

References

1. ^ Benowitz, Neal; Herrera, Brenda; Jacob, Peyton (2004). "Mentholated Cigarette Smoking Inhibits Nicotine Metabolism". The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics 310 (3): 1208–15. doi:10.1124/jpet.104.066902. ISSN 0022-3565. PMID 15084646. http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/310/3/1208. 
2. ^ ^{a b} McNichols, Tom (25 March 2011). "Mint that Kills: The Curious Life of Menthol Cigarettes". The Atlantic. http://www.theatlantic.com/life/archive/2011/03/mint-that-kills-the-curious-life-of-menthol-cigarettes/73016/. Retrieved 18 July 2011. 
3. ^ "Federal Trade Commission Cigarette Report for 2006". Federal Trade Commission. http://www.ftc.gov/os/2009/08/090812cigarettereport.pdf. Retrieved 18 July 2011. 
4. ^ Rubin, Rita (2009-09-27). "Exclusion of menthol cigarettes in ban worries health experts". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-09-27-menthol-cigarettes_N.htm. Retrieved 2010-05-12. 
5. ^ "Harvard Researchers Gather More Evidence Implicating Menthol in Health Disparities Between White and Black Smokers". http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/archives/2005-releases/press08182005.html. 
6. ^ "The National Survey on Drug Use and Health Report". Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k9/134/134MentholCigarettes.htm. Retrieved 18 July 2011. 
7. ^ "FDA V. BROWN & WILLIAMSON TOBACCO CORP. (98-1152)". United States Supreme Court. http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/98-1152.ZD.html. Retrieved 18 July 2011. 
8. ^ ^{a b} Wilson, Duff (18 March 2011). "Advisory Panel Urges F.D.A to Re-examine Menthol in Cigarettes". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/19/business/19tobacco.html?_r=4. Retrieved 19 July 2011. 
9. ^ "Tobacco Makers Fight Menthol Rules". Associated Press. 18 March 2011. http://articles.boston.com/2011-03-18/business/29350721_1_menthol-tobacco-industry-tobacco-companies. Retrieved 19 July 2011. 
10. ^ "Much heated puffing among minority groups over menthol cigarette ban". Los Angeles Times. 18 October 2010. http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/18/news/la-heb-menthol-101810. Retrieved 19 July 2011. 
11. ^ Rubin, Rita (14 March 2011). "FDA weighs ban on Newports, other menthol cigarettes". USA Today. http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/story/2011/03/FDA-weighs-ban-on--Newports-other-menthol-cigarettes/44877538/1. Retrieved 19 July 2011. 
12. ^ Lee, Jessie (24 March 2011). "Banning menthol cigarettes will create contraband market". Indianapolis Recorder. http://www.indianapolisrecorder.com/news/print_highlights/article_5d6ea6ec-5640-11e0-9b22-001cc4c002e0.html. Retrieved 19 July 2011. 
13. ^ "National Troopers Coalition Applauds FDA Consideration of New Black Market Tobacco Study". PR Newswire. 18 November 2010. http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-troopers-coalition-applauds-fda-consideration-of-new-black-market-tobacco-study-108949074.html. Retrieved 19 July 2011. 
14. ^ "Union: Don't Ban Menthols". Winston-Salem Journal. 9 December 2010. http://www2.journalnow.com/business/2010/dec/09/union-dont-ban-menthols-ar-602295/. Retrieved 20 July 2011. 
15. ^ Zajac, Andrew (18 March 2011). "Tobacco industry brushes off call for FDA restrictions on menthol cigarettes". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/18/nation/la-na-menthol-cigarettes-20110319. Retrieved 19 July 2011. 

External links

• FTC Cigarette Report for 2002
• FDA Milestones
• Menthol vs. Nonmenthol Cigarettes: Effects on Smoking Behavior
• Menthol Cigarette Smoking in African Americans and whites
• UCSF Tobacco Industry Videos Collection