The Food and Drug Administration is planning to reduce the amount of nicotine in traditional cigarettes to minimally or non-addictive levels, according to STAT.
The agency announced goals of lowering the amount of nicotine in traditional cigarettes and properly regulating electronic cigarettes to reduce the harm nicotine causes to health.
"The overwhelming amount of death and disease attributable to tobacco is caused by addiction to cigarettes — the only legal consumer product that, when used as intended, will kill half of all long-term users," FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, said in a briefing on Friday.
In August 2016, the FDA began imposing regulations for electronic cigarettes, declaring it illegal to market the products to individuals under 18 years old and requiring e-cigarette companies to submit information about the ingredients and chemicals in e-cigarettes. The industry responded with criticism and the FDA postponed implementation of these regulations. While Dr. Gottlieb said the industry should have more time to come in compliance with FDA regulations, he also stressed that these products need to be regulated to reduce addiction and hinder access for children.
The FDA will seek public input regarding the potential implications regarding the reduction of nicotine in cigarettes and how to achieve its goal of lowering nicotine in cigarettes.
The FDA did not release the specific amount of nicotine that would need to be removed to establish a non-addictive cigarette.