Tobacco additives. Cigarette engineering and nicotine addiction

ENGLISH :
Introduction. In the European Union over 600 additives may be used in the manufacture of tobacco products under an extremely loose and de-centralised regulatory framework. Although tobacco additives are generally screened for their direct toxicity, there is virtually no assessment of the impact additives have on smoking behaviour or other undesirable external consequences. If a small quantity of a relatively benign substance added to a tobacco product can make the product more addictive, make it easier to start smoking or facilitate continued smoking then it may be causing great harm by 'leveraging' additional smoking. The additional smoking brings increased exposure to over 4,000 chemicals, including many that are highly toxic and carcinogenic. For this reason, tobacco additives should be seen as major public health issue in their own right. Evidence. This report draws on evidence from tobacco industry internal documents released during recent litigation in the United States and held on the Internet or in British American Tobacco's document depository in Guildford, UK. The views of the UK Government's scientific advisory committees since 1971 are also discussed - showing that the issue has been recognised and debated for more than twenty years. Findings. Most additives are not necessary and few were used before 1970. The purpose of this report is to raise concerns about the impact of additives on smoking behaviour. There is cause for concern in the following areas
: Additives are used to make cigarettes that provide high levels of 'free' nicotine which increases the addictive 'kick' of the nicotine. Ammonium compounds can fulfil this role by raising the alkalinity of smoke
; Additives are used to enhance the taste of tobacco smoke, to make the product more desirable to consumers. Although seemingly innocuous the addition of flavourings making the cigarette 'attractive' and 'palatable' is in itself cause for concern
; Sweeteners and chocolate may help to make cigarettes more palatable to children and first time users, eugenol and menthol numb the throat so the smoker cannot feel the smoke's aggravating effects
; Additives such as cocoa may be used to dilate the airways allowing the smoke an easier and deeper passage into the lungs exposing the body to more nicotine and higher levels of tar
; Some additives are toxic or addictive in their own right or in combination. When additives are burned, new products of combustion are formed and these may be toxic or pharmacologically active
; Additives are used to mask the smell and visibility of side-stream smoke, making it harder for people to protect themselves and undermining claims that smoking is anti-social without at the same time reducing the health risks of passive smoking. (From authors' abstract)