Kris Alingod – AHN News Contributor
Washington, DC, United States (AHN) – Advocates have welcomed a recommendation from a Food and Drug Administration panel to ban menthol cigarettes to benefit public health. Cigarette companies remain optimistic the FDA will rule in their favor after a full federal review of the effects of the product.
The American Heart Association praised the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee for “‘do[ing] exactly what Congress directed when it enacted the 2009 law granting the FDA authority over tobacco products.” The group urged the FDA to “act expeditiously and implement the committee’s recommendation.”
The statement was issued jointly with the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and the American Lung Association.
Legacy, an anti-smoking group established following the 1998 settlement of Medicaid lawsuits against American tobacco companies by 46 states, likewise applauded the panel for “recognizing menthol for what it is – a tool to soothe the throat and ease discomfort associated with smoking.”
“By eliminating [menthol cigarettes], we can go a long way toward preventing our nation’s youth from being recruited as ‘replacement smokers’ for those who quit smoking or who lose their lives to tobacco-related disease,” the group’s president and chief executive, Cheryl Healton, said in a statement.
The FDA committee concluded last Friday that menthol cigarettes increase the number of minors who smoke.
Citing studies, the panel said the proportion of youth smokers who use menthol cigarettes is higher than that of adult smokers. It found that younger teen smokers have a higher proportion of menthol cigarette smokers than older adolescent smokers.
According to the committee, “menthol cigarettes are marketed disproportionately to younger smokers.”
The panel concluded there is evidence that new smokers have a greater prevalence of menthol cigarette use than regular smokers. It added that a proportion of menthol cigarette use among youth smokers is increasing while non-menthol cigarette use is decreasing or remains flat.
But Lorillard, the nation’s third largest cigarette manufacturer, said the committee issued its recommendation “despite the fact that they found there was no difference in disease risk between smokers of menthol cigarettes and smokers of non-menthol cigarettes.”
The company called the conclusions “unsubstantiated” and maintained that a complete FDA review would result in the product remaining in the market.
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company issued a terse statement that it “looks forward to participating in further review of menthol cigarettes by FDA.”
Philip Morris USA emphasized the panel’s report is non-binding and would have no direct effect on the availability of menthol cigarettes. The company sad it would provide the FDA with “science-and evidence-based information” this week.
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