低尼古丁含量的香烟可能会降低成瘾度

Lower Nicotine¹ Cigarettes May Reduce Addiction² 低尼古丁含量的香烟可能会降低成瘾度

Nicotine is highly addictive³. It is also the main reason quitting smoking is so difficult. Now, a new study suggests that selling only cigarettes with very low nicotine levels may actually help people stop smoking.  

In some countries, more than 50 percent of all men smoke cigarettes or use another tobacco product. Experts say nearly half of them will die of cancer. That adds up to about 20 billion deaths worldwide so far this century.

A national study shows that if the amount of nicotine in cigarettes is reduced, it might help smokers⁴ quit.

For the study, U.S. researchers gathered more than 800 smokers across the country.      

Some of the participants were given very low-nicotine cigarettes. They did not know it at the time. The other participants smoked their usual brand of cigarettes. The study took six weeks.

The participants who used their usual cigarettes smoked between 22 and 21 cigarettes per day. Participants who smoked cigarettes containing much less nicotine smoked just 14 to 16 cigarettes a day.

Smokers who got the lower nicotine cigarettes did not feel the usual withdrawal⁵ symptoms. Some of them even went on to quit smoking entirely⁶.

An article in the New England Journal of Medicine makes the case for regulating nicotine as a way to help people quit smoking.  Tobacco researcher Michael Fiore was not involved in the study, but he   wrote an article in the journal.

"Way back in 1976, an early and famous tobacco researcher said the following: People smoke for the nicotine but they die from the tar⁷.' And that tar results from burning tobacco. Thus if we could somehow dis-associate these two, and wean people off deadly tar, then we could prevent tens of millions of deaths over time."

David Tinkelman is Medical Director of Health Initiatives at National Jewish Health in Denver, Colorado. He finds it interesting-- the idea of marketing⁸ cigarettes with very low nicotine.

But he notes that cigarette replacements⁹ have not reduced nicotine addiction or tobacco use.  Cigarette replacements include electronic or e-cigarettes, in which smokers inhale¹⁰ water vapor¹¹ containing nicotine.

"There are many studies which show that e-cigarettes, which deliver nicotine, don't actually help a lot of people break their addiction to tobacco or help people get off of cigarettes. What happens is they switch addictions¹².  They are just taking it a different way."

Both Mr. Tinkelman and Mr. Fiore agree. They say more studies are needed to show whether low nicotine cigarettes help smokers kick the habit.  

In 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama signed a law regulating nicotine. It permitted regulators to require that only cigarettes with very low nicotine levels can be sold in the United States.

However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has yet to act on that law.  

Words in This Story

nicotine – n.  the poisonous substance in tobacco that makes it difficult for people to stop smoking

fraction – n. a small portion of something

disassociate – v.  disconnect or separate

wean off – phrasal verb - to make someone or something stop doing or using something

1 nicotine   

n.(化)尼古丁，烟碱

参考例句：

• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily.许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。
• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily.许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。

2 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

3 addictive   

adj.(吸毒等)使成瘾的，成为习惯的

参考例句：

• The problem with video game is that they're addictive.电子游戏机的问题在于它们会使人上瘾。
• Cigarettes are highly addictive.香烟很容易使人上瘾。

4 smokers   

吸烟者( smoker的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily. 许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。
• Chain smokers don't care about the dangers of smoking. 烟鬼似乎不在乎吸烟带来的种种危害。

5 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

6 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

7 tar   

n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于

参考例句：

• The roof was covered with tar.屋顶涂抹了一层沥青。
• We use tar to make roads.我们用沥青铺路。

8 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

9 replacements   

n.代替( replacement的名词复数 )；替换的人[物]；替代品；归还

参考例句：

• They infiltrated behind the lines so as to annoy the emery replacements. 他们渗透敌后以便骚扰敌军的调度。 来自辞典例句
• For oil replacements, cheap suddenly looks less of a problem. 对于石油的替代品来说，价格变得无足轻重了。 来自互联网

10 inhale   

v.吸入(气体等)，吸(烟)

参考例句：

• Don't inhale dust into your lung.别把灰尘吸进肺里。
• They are pleased to not inhale second hand smoke.他们很高兴他们再也不会吸到二手烟了。

11 vapor   

n.蒸汽，雾气

参考例句：

• The cold wind condenses vapor into rain.冷风使水蒸气凝结成雨。
• This new machine sometimes transpires a lot of hot vapor.这部机器有时排出大量的热气。

12 addictions   

瘾( addiction的名词复数 )； 吸毒成瘾； 沉溺； 癖好

参考例句：

• He has removed the stigma of drug addictions. 他已经洗去吸毒的污点了。
• Intelligent people are good at using reason to control excessive addictions. 智慧的人善于用理性来控制过度的嗜欲。