BAT Tests Health Effects of Flavored Cigarettes
BOSTON -- While British American Tobacco (BAT) is conducting trials on new flavored cigarettes,the company has come under fire from anti-smoking lobbying groups who say that the flavored cigarettes will encourage children to smoke, reported the Independent. Flavors include chocolate, wine, sherry, tea, cocoa, cherry juice, corn syrup, vanilla and maple syrup.
"Adding sweets to tobacco is appalling. It shows that we need more tobacco regulation to prevent anything being added that could make tobacco more attractive, or smoother, or easier to use," said Deborah Arnott, director of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH). "These are the sort of ingredients that could make cigarettes more attractive to children. Why would they want to test these sort of additives?"
A BAT spokesman said the flavor trials were conducted to determine if cigarettes with added ingredients had different effects on health compared with cigarettes without additives. The study was conducted in Canada on laboratory rats.
The spokesman said chocolate and tea were tested because they were currently used or could be used in the future, adding,""Anybody who might attempt to claim that they are added to appeal to youth are barking mad because cigarettes taste like cigarettes."
BAT said the study found no "discernible" difference between the effects of tobacco smoke with or without additives on the health of rats.
"Adding sweets to tobacco is appalling. It shows that we need more tobacco regulation to prevent anything being added that could make tobacco more attractive, or smoother, or easier to use," said Deborah Arnott, director of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH). "These are the sort of ingredients that could make cigarettes more attractive to children. Why would they want to test these sort of additives?"
A BAT spokesman said the flavor trials were conducted to determine if cigarettes with added ingredients had different effects on health compared with cigarettes without additives. The study was conducted in Canada on laboratory rats.
The spokesman said chocolate and tea were tested because they were currently used or could be used in the future, adding,""Anybody who might attempt to claim that they are added to appeal to youth are barking mad because cigarettes taste like cigarettes."
BAT said the study found no "discernible" difference between the effects of tobacco smoke with or without additives on the health of rats.