Nicotine on its own is not addictive!

Researchers at the CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research) and the College of France have highlighted the role of certain monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) that are also found in tobacco products. It is their association with nicotine that, according to the researchers, appears to be the cause of dependency.

This is how it works: these MAOIs act by unleashing the addictive properties of nicotine, explains Jean-Pol Tassin of the College of France, who carried out this research. In fact they cancel out the natural protection of neurons with respect to nicotine.

In other words, as Tassin and his team have shown, nicotine alone is not enough to trigger a state of dependency among smokers. Other tobacco components -the infamous MAOIs in fact - prove to be essential in unleashing its addictive capacity.

For the authors, this discovery also explains why the nicotine substitutes used to help in quitting smoking are ineffective in the long-term. Indeed, according to the researcher who cites several studies on the subject, 80% of nicotine patch users start smoking again within one year of quitting. Nicotine alone is not sufficient as a substitute product.

It should be remembered that worldwide, smoking kills nearly 5 million people each year. And by 2030, this figure is expected to rise to as many as 8 million… which is an increase of 63%.

Philip Morris USA pulls new filter cigarettes

RICHMOND, Va. -- Philip Morris USA has ended market tests of Marlboro cigarettes that use a high-technology filter to reduce the risk of smoking.A spokesman for the parent of the Richmond-based company, Bill Phelps, said Monday that Marlboro Ultra Smooth and Marlboro Ultra Light cigarettes were discontinued due to lower consumer acceptance.
The cigarettes use an activated carbon filter that delivers nicotine but with potentially less exposure to carcinogens.
Philip Morris stopped shipments of Marlboro Ultra Smooth to wholesalers in April. Those cigarettes were being tested in Atlanta, Tampa, Florida, and Salt Lake City for more than three years. Tests of Marlboro Ultra Lights in Phoenix and North Dakota were also discontinued.