Addictions and Recovery

15. Nicotine. I. Cigarettes are a highly engineered nicotine delivery system.

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore, chart, and describe the Louisiana Territory, newly acquired from France.  During their travels, Lewis describes a ceremony with the elders and warriors of the Northern Shoshone in 1805, in which they smoke tobacco from a shared pipe:

“…I now had the pipe lit and gave them smoke; they seated themselves in a circle around us and pulled of their mockersons before they would receive or smoke the pipe.  this is a custom among them as I afterwards learned indicative of a sacred obligation of sincerity in their profession of friendship given by the act of receiving and smoking the pipe of a stranger, or which is as much to say that they wish they may always go bearfoot [sic]  if they are not sincere; a pretty heavy penalty if they are to march through the plains of their country…The chief next produced and native tobacco and began a long ceremony of the pipe when were requested to take off our mockersons, the chief having previously taken off his as well as all the warrior present.  this we compyed [sic] with; the chief then lit his pipe at the fire kindled in this little magic circle, and standing on the opposite side of the circle uttered a speech of several minutes in length at the conlcusion of which he pointed the stem to the four cardinal points of the heavens first begining [sic]at the East and ending with the North…(Moulton, 1988).”

99-12-10/53100.5 T3005.2

A Native American en:peace pipe.From an exhibition guide at the en:Library of Congress. The item is owned by the w:Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, which identifies it as being from the upper Missouri River.

The sanctity by which Native Americans smoke tobacco in the context of a peace ceremony hasn’t changed much since then, and its use is symbolic of the relationship of the smoker and his Creator.

It is difficult to believe that given the solemnity and sanctity of the ceremony that smoking tobacco could become habit-forming. Perhaps it is the invention of the cigarette-making machine in 1881 by James Bonsack that served as the catalyst for tobacco to be responsible for the deaths of up to half of its users (Data from Table 1 of Sansone et. al. 2023):

  • Annually, tobacco claims the lives of over 8 million individuals, which includes 1.3 million non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke;
  • Approximately 80% of the world’s 1.3 billion tobacco consumers reside in low- and middle-income countries;
  • In the year 2020, the prevalence of tobacco use was 22.3% of the global population, including 36.7% of men and 7.8% of women.

Cigarettes are the principal means by which tobacco users expose themselves, and they are, in fact, a sophisticated, highly engineered nicotine delivery systems.

Infographic from the US Food and Drug Administration

Cigarette components

Let us now take a look at each of the components of a cigarette to see how it is optimized to deliver nicotine to the consumer and at the same time, which allow the consumer to adjust how the nicotine is inhaled (adapted from Talhout et. al. 2018):

The tobacco itself

  • Tobacco companies have been able to produce strains of tobacco which vary in the nicotine content of their leaves, thus allowing for low- and high- nicotine cigarettes;
  • The tobacco is treated with alkali to increase the burning temperature as the flame goes through it, thus maximizing the release of nicotine from the leaves;

Filter ventilation

  • The amount of filter ventilation refers to the percentage of smoke that is diluted by air during a puff and is defined as the amount of air entering the cigarette through the portion of tipping paper that does not overlap the tobacco rod;
  • One way to yield low tar deliveries is to introduce ventilation holes into the filter paper. With each toke, the consumer inhales air which dilutes the cigarette’s smoke;
  • The amount of ventilation or dilution depends on the porosity of the plug wrap, the extend of tipping-paper perforation or porosity, and the location of the perforations;
  • Porosity is controlled by the size of the openings (pores) created by the bonded structure of cellulose fibers in the filter and calcium carbonate;
  • The amount of filter ventilation ranges from about 10% in some full-flavored varieties to 80% in machine-measured very low delivery brands.

Filter material

  • Most filters (90%) are composed of crimped cellulose acetate fiber;
  • Other filters may include paper, or a mixture of paper and acetate fiber;
  • Activated carbon (charcoal) has been added to remove volatile chemicals. The amount of these volatile chemicals that are removed depends on the amount of charcoal, the age of the charcoal filter, and smoking intensity, i.e. how strongly the cigarette smoke is drawn through the cigarette. Under more intense smoking machine conditions, smoke emissions of tar, carbon monoxide and volatile compounds were no longer significantly lower in the smoke of some charcoal-filtered cigarettes compared to cellulose acetate filtered cigarettes

Filter Flavor Capsules, Granules, and Flavor Threads

  • Flavor capsules are inserted into the filter, and they may include menthol, lemon mint, and herbal or botanical granules;
  • Cigarettes may also contain a flavored thread in the thread which can be colored “to create a more unique appearance” or as a “visual indicator of taste delivery technology”;
  • These additives contribute to the misconception that such cigarettes are safe to use. They are growing in popularity among young and occasional smokers.

Cigarette Length and Circumference

  • Longer and slimmer cigarettes appeal to women. Various reasons are attributed to this phenomenon. Generally, these types of cigarettes are perceived as being more stylish, feminine, and higher quality.
  • Reducing the circumference of cigarettes increases smoke velocity, i.e. reduces the time that smoke takes to pass from the point of the flame to the mouth end of the cigarette. Increased smoke velocities will decrease the efficiency of filtration so that more particles, vapor and gases will reach the consumer.

The average number of cigarettes smoked per day in the United States varies between 10 and 19 cigarettes (in 2020), while the average number of puffs per cigarettes is 11. However, cigarette smokers are very good at adjusting their draw (i.e. effort to take a puff), depth of inhalation, and number of cigarettes smoked in order to get the desired effect. Research shows that when a user accustomed to a cigarette type with an average nicotine content is offered a different type with a lower nicotine content, that user will increase the number of cigarettes smoked or increase the depth of inhalation.

Sansone, L.; Milani, F.; Fabrizi, R.; Belli, M.; Cristina, M.; Zaga, V.; de Iure, A.; Cicconi, L.; Bonassi, S.; Russo, P. (2023). Nicotine: From Discovery to Biological Effects. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 24: 14570. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241914570

Talhout, R.; Richter, P.; Stepanov, I.; Watson, CV; Watson, CH. (2018). Cigarette Design Features: Effects on Emission Levels, User Perception, and Behavior. Tob Regul Sci. 41(1): 592-604. doi:10.18001/TRS.4.1.6