title: Compensatory smoking from gradual and immediate reduction in cigarette nicotine content.
abstract: Reducing the addictiveness of cigarettes by reducing their nicotine content can potentially have a profound impact on public health. Two different approaches to nicotine reduction have been proposed: gradual and immediate. To determine if either of these approaches results in significant compensatory smoking behavior, which might lead to safety concerns, we performed a secondary analysis of data from studies that have utilized these two approaches. The number of cigarettes smoked per day, carbon monoxide exposure, and cotinine levels in plasma or urine were assessed while participants smoked reduced nicotine content cigarettes and compared with when they smoked their usual brand cigarettes. The results showed that in general, these two approaches led to minimal compensatory smoking and reduced levels of cotinine over the course of the experimental period, suggesting that neither of these approaches poses a major safety concern.
authors.affiliation: Tobacco Research Programs and Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota. hatsu001@umn.edu.
authors.forename: Dorothy K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Hatsukami
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Eric C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Donny
authors.affiliation: Masonic Comprehensive Cancer Center and School of Public Health, Division of Biostatistics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Joseph S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Koopmeiners
authors.affiliation: Departments of Medicine and Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California.
authors.forename: Neal L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Benowitz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003367:Cotinine / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D003617:Dangerous Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009538:Nicotine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry; D012907:Smoking / Q000523:psychology*; D061485:Tobacco Use Cessation Devices; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D009538:Nicotine; D003367:Cotinine