FAMILIAR ‘SMOKE and MIRRORS’ PROMOTE E-CIGS

A new study examine how the tobacco industry managed to raise the levels of tar and nicotine in “light” cigarettes for decades without a regulatory crackdown—despite mounting proof of health hazards.

The conclusion could shed light on the current controversy over electronic cigarettes.

Massively marketed as a safer, healthy alternative to smoking, electronic cigarettes are under fire from California health officials, who have declared “vaping” a public health threat.

Starting in the early 1960s, in the face of increasing public scrutiny, US tobacco firms marketed “lights” as a modern, safer type of cigarette due to their low tar and nicotine content. By the 1990s, a number of light brands outpace their full-flavor counterparts in deliveries of both components.

Using data from tobacco firm internal documents, the study shows that consumers decreased their scrutiny of the tar and nicotine levels of light cigarette brands as they became increasingly familiar with the light category.

Tobacco firms in turn strategically used this lack of scrutiny to increase the tar and nicotine deliveries of both new and established light cigarette product. It wasn’t until 2009 that the federal government finally stepped in to regulate tobacco products with the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act.

Researchers and the media have highlighted the potential for manipulation in several growing market categories, counting organic produce, “green” products such as hybrid cars and 

energy-saving appliances, nontoxic beauty brands, and sectors defined around craft techniques, personnel, or ingredients such as microbrews, wild fishing, and Greek yogurt.

“In such cases, without the presence of regulatory watchdogs setting and upholding fair standards, the opportunities for and likelihood of manipulations are normal to increase,” Hsu says. “One lesson is that monitoring must be done by a trusted source.”