New US government regulations will reduce the amount of nicotine in cigarettes to make them less addictive. According to the CDC, smoking kills a half a million Americans annually. Reducing nicotine should lower that number. Nicotine is the most addictive element of tobacco smoke.
There is a much darker side to this story. Tobacco companies knew they were selling an addictive drug. They developed tobacco plants with more nicotine and added chemicals to make the free nicotine more available. They knew about the dangers of smoking and made cigarettes more addictive to increase sales. They were more interested in money than their neighbors. We will always need strong regulation to protect Americans from predatory corporations.
Lowering the nicotine content will make cigarettes less addictive but it will not make them much safer. Smoke is loaded with oxidative particles which cause cancer, COPD, and heart disease. Lowering the addictive potential of cigarettes is a great step forward but smoking cessation remains important.
Excellent article! Me and one of my brothers were brought up at a time when everyone in our family smoked and every where we went we were surrounded by smokers. I think that is the reason he and I both have asthma. Not to mention our parents had a laundry and dry cleaning business and we were exposed to all those chemicals as well. All 3 of our kids smoke. I have given up trying to get them to stop. It's no wonder considering how addictive they are.
Yeah, you are so right!