March 25, 2011 - As has been reported, last Friday the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee submitted a report to the Food and Drug Administration that outlined the public health risks of menthol in cigarettes. While the tobacco industry claimed victory because the report didn’t call for a menthol ban, Dr. Jonathan M. Samet, the chairman of a Committee, said this enthusiasm may be premature. He stated that the panel’s scientific report gives ample evidence to the Food and Drug Administration to phase out or restrict menthol in cigarettes.

The Committee found that the minty additive in menthol cigarettes posed a public health risk because it makes it easier to start smoking and harder to quit, as compared with non-menthol cigarettes. The report states that “Removal of menthol cigarettes from the marketplace would benefit public health in the United States.”

For more information:
http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/22/panel-chief-f-d-a-could-still-ban-menthol/?partner=rss&emc=rss