title: Comparison of the nicotine content of tobacco used in bidis and conventional cigarettes.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the nicotine content of 12 unfiltered brands of bidi cigarettes (hand rolled cigarettes imported from India) with 8 popular brands of filtered and unfiltered US and conventional cigarettes from India.
  
  
  METHODS
  Identical laboratory procedures were used to determine nicotine content (in duplicate) and physical characteristics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The nicotine concentration in the tobacco of bidi cigarettes (21.2 mg/g) was significantly greater than the tobacco from the commercial filtered (16.3 mg/g) and unfiltered cigarettes (13.5 mg/g).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Bidi cigarettes contain higher concentrations of nicotine than conventional cigarettes. Therefore, it is logical to presume that bidi smokers are at risk of becoming nicotine dependent. These findings belief a popular belief among US teens that bidis are a safe alternative to commercial cigarettes.
authors.affiliation: National Institute on Drug Abuse, Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Malson
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sims
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Murty
authors.forename: W B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Pickworth
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D009538:Nicotine / Q000032:analysis*; D010947:Plants, Toxic; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000737:chemistry*; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D009538:Nicotine