Experience with reduced‐nicotine cigarettes and whether this decreases smoking and substitution for full‐nicotine cigarettes

• Published in: Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior 2024-11, Vol.122 (3), p.282-296
• Main Authors: Naudé, Gideon P., Strickland, Justin C., Berry, Meredith S., Dolan, Sean B., Cox, David J., Johnson, Matthew W.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abuse; Adult; Cigarette Smoking - psychology; Cigarettes; Double-Blind Method; Drug dependence; Economics, Behavioral; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Nicotine; Olfaction; Operant conditioning; Self Administration - psychology; Smoking; Smoking - psychology; Tobacco Products; Tobacco Use Disorder - psychology; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0022-5002; 1938-3711; 1938-3711
• DOI: 10.1002/jeab.4223

Studies suggest that reduced‐nicotine cigarettes decrease nicotine intake and dependence. However, questions remain about reduced‐nicotine cigarette abuse liability, whether reduced‐nicotine cigarette exposure lowers reduced‐ and full‐nicotine cigarette use, and whether reduced‐nicotine cigarettes substitute for full‐nicotine cigarettes. This randomized, double‐blind laboratory study used operant behavioral economics to examine abuse liability of cigarettes with varying nicotine content. Non‐treatment‐seeking smokers (N = 43) self‐administered reduced‐ (5.2, 2.4, or 1.3 mg/g) and full‐nicotine (15.8 mg/g) cigarettes before and after 3 weeks of at‐home exposure. Participants were randomized to full‐nicotine or one of the reduced‐nicotine cigarettes to determine the effect of exposure on abuse liability and substitutability. Abuse liability was assessed in single‐commodity sessions, and substitutability was measured in concurrent‐commodity sessions. In the self‐administration sessions, concurrently available reduced‐nicotine cigarettes attenuated full‐nicotine cigarette demand and rendered reduced‐nicotine cigarettes partial substitutes for full‐nicotine cigarettes. Exposure to study cigarettes for 3 weeks marginally reduced demand for reduced‐ and full‐nicotine cigarettes irrespective of nicotine content. Results suggest a limited influence of nicotine content on smoking behavior in established smokers and highlight the role of nonpharmacological factors (e.g., taste/smell) on the maintenance of smoking. These results should be considered in determining whether a nicotine‐reduction standard is a feasible path for reducing cigarette demand.