The FDA’s plan to cap nicotine in cigarettes could help millions quit smoking, but its future depends on Trump.
Washington: So, the FDA just dropped a big proposal to make cigarettes less addictive by limiting nicotine. This is something anti-smoking folks have wanted for ages, but it might not happen anytime soon.
With Biden’s term winding down, the chances of this actually going through seem slim. Trump, who’s coming back into the picture, hasn’t said much about it yet. Remember, his first FDA chief tried something similar, but it didn’t go anywhere.
Now, Trump’s health secretary pick, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., hasn’t really shared his thoughts on tobacco regulation either. Even if they push this plan, big tobacco companies are likely to fight it in court, which could drag things out.
The FDA believes that capping nicotine could help around 13 million smokers quit within a year. Plus, it could stop about 48 million young people from ever starting to smoke since cigarettes would be less addictive.
The plan is to set nicotine levels so low that they wouldn’t keep people hooked. The FDA shared a detailed analysis online, and it’s got a lot of support from anti-smoking advocates who want Kennedy to back it if he gets confirmed.
Smoking is a huge killer in the U.S., causing over 480,000 deaths each year from various diseases. Even though smoking rates are dropping, the health issues linger on.
This idea of limiting nicotine isn’t brand new. The FDA got the power to regulate tobacco back in 2009, but they’ve faced a lot of pushback from lawsuits. They can’t completely remove nicotine, but they can set a maximum level, which would be a first globally.
Right now, there are no limits on nicotine in the U.S. The FDA has been working on this since 2022 and has heard from a ton of people, including tobacco companies and health experts.
Interestingly, smoking rates in the U.S. are at an all-time low, with only 1 in 9 adults smoking. Low-nicotine cigarettes have been tried before, but they didn’t catch on. However, studies show that when smokers switch to these low-nicotine options, they tend to smoke less and are more likely to quit.
