Menthol Smokers Have Harder Time Kicking The Habit
Posted on: Wednesday, 21 January 2009, 15:23 CST
A new study finds that smokers of menthol cigarettes may have a harder time kicking the habit than those who smoke the standard variety. The findings, which held true particularly for lower-income smokers, adds to other evidence that mentholated cigarettes may be particularly addictive. They also highlight the role that socioeconomics may play in the trend.
The study’s results showed that blacks and Hispanics who smoked menthol cigarettes had lower long-term quit rates than their counterparts who smoked non-mentholated cigarettes. No such difference was seen among white smokers overall. However, researchers did notice a pattern among unemployed whites, in that those who smoked menthol cigarettes had lower quit rates one month out.
Prior studies have shown that menthol-cigarette smokers typically have higher blood levels of nicotine than other smokers.
"This study suggests that people who smoke mentholated cigarettes -- particularly those with a low disposable income -- may inhale more nicotine and toxins per cigarette," Kunal K. Gandhi of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, New Jersey, told Reuters.
This may create a stronger addiction, explained Gandhi, the study’s lead researcher.
Income may come into play by changing the way in which people smoke, Gandhi and his colleagues say. For instance, low-income smokers may try to get more out of each cigarette by taking a higher number of puffs. Or they may engage in deeper inhaling, something made easier by menthol’s cooling effect, which helps dampen the harshness of nicotine and other tobacco toxins.
The findings were based on a study of 1,688 smokers who sought cessation therapy during a four year time period. Of the participants, one-third of white patients smoked menthol cigarettes, while two-thirds of Latino patients and 81 percent of African Americans did so.
Among the black participants, smokers of menthol-cigarette were only one-third as likely to have successfully quit smoking after one month as those who smoked non-menthol cigarettes, Gandhi's team found. Among Latinos, the findings were nearly identical. Even at six months out, menthol smokers were still less likely to have kicked the habit.
Ghandi said that mentholated cigarette smokers may find themselves highly addicted, even if their daily number of cigarettes is comparatively low. Indications of strong addition can include waking up at night to smoke and feeling the need to smoke a cigarette within 30 minutes of waking up in the morning, he added.
Ghandi noted that all smokers increase their chances of quitting with counseling and prescription medication for nicotine addiction.
The findings were published in the journal International Journal of Clinical Practice, February 2009.
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Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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