Mental Health Center

Nicotine Levels in Cigarettes Rising

What Do Higher Levels Mean?

Connolly agrees regulation is needed to force tobacco companies to disclose important information about their products.

“People have a right to know what is in these products, and they are not getting that information,” he says. “We need agencies like the FDA that have the competency to step in and regulate these products the way we would any other drug delivery device.”

Higher nicotine levels in cigarettes do not necessarily mean higher nicotine exposures among individual smokers.

Studies suggest that smokers of cigarettes with less nicotine -- light and ultralight brands -- may smoke more cigarettes or inhale more deeply to get the same amount of nicotine as other smokers.

“We can’t say if increases in nicotine levels in cigarettes lead to higher exposures because there are so many variables in the way people smoke,” Connolly says. “We need better human testing to answer this question.”

Donna Vallone of the antismoking advocacy group The American Legacy Foundation agrees there is a need for research into the impact of product nicotine levels on human exposure, specifically as it relates to addiction.

“When you understand what the level of human exposure is, then you can actually gain information about the public health impact,” she tells WebMD.