The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it may place restrictions on menthol cigarettes following a scientific review showing that those products are likely to be more addictive than regular cigarettes, Reuters reported.
The FDA published results from a study it conducted which suggested that "menthol cigarettes pose a public health risk above that seen with non-menthol cigarettes."
"Menthol smokers show greater signs of nicotine dependence and are less likely to successfully quit smoking," the FDA said.
Anti-tobacco groups have said that the FDA has enough evidence in hand to ban menthol cigarettes and should not need any additional input from companies or the public.
"This additional delay will simply prolong the disease and death caused by menthol cigarettes, with particularly adverse consequences for youth and African-Americans who smoke menthol cigarettes at disproportionately higher rates," said David Dobbins, chief operating officer at Legacy, a tobacco research and public health advocacy organization. This comes as the tobacco industry acknowledged the inherent health risks of all tobacco products.
Menthol cigarettes are one of the few growth areas in a shrinking cigarette market, news reports said. The percentage of U.S. cigarette smokers using menthol brands grew from 33.9 percent in 2008 to 37.5 percent in 2011, according to a study by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Younger smokers typically prefer it as well.
Lorillard Inc. is the country's third-largest tobacco company. Lorillard, whose Newport brand is the top-selling menthol cigarette in the U.S., with nearly 38 percent of the market.
