rssYou Mean Nicotine’s a Drug?
Thursday, April 02, 2009 at 5:02 pm
- 5 Comments
It may come a surprise to some that the government has tougher safety standards for Cocoa Puffs than for Marlboros, but under current law, the Food and Drug Administration has no power to regulate the cigarette industry.
House lawmakers took a step today to change that, passing legislation placing tobacco products under the regulatory eye of the FDA. But as evidence of just how slowly Washington works (and how powerful industries can be), the fate of the bill is uncertain in the Senate, where some regional protectionists have vowed to kill it.
The New York Times describes the bill:
As passed by the House the legislation would set up a new F.D.A. office, financed by industry fees, with powers to restrict harmful chemicals in existing tobacco products — including nicotine and possibly, after further study, menthol. The F.D.A. would also be empowered to approve or reject new tobacco products and to expand marketing restrictions and warning labels.
Among the changes, the bill would prohibit tobacco ads within 1,000 feet of schools and require companies to disclose the ingredients of their products. The FDA would not have the power to eliminate tobacco products outright.
A decade ago, the FDA tried to regulate tobacco, but the Supreme Court ruled in 2000 that Congress must specifically empower the agency to monitor the industry. Bill sponsor Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), who now heads the House Energy and Commerce Committee, has been trying to do just that for years.
He’s almost there. President Obama supports the bill. The only potential deal-killer could come in the Senate, where North Carolina GOP Sen. Richard Burr has vowed a filibuster, The Times reports.
Is it 2009 or 1709? How the Senate votes will give us the answer.
5 Comments
Comment posted April 2, 2009 @ 4:27 pm
Given the wealth of evidence already published in the leading peer-reviewed medical journals showing that smokeless products are 98% safer than cigarettes, it would be in the public interest for these House and Senate bills to include language distinguishing these products and supporting regulations that would encourage smokers to switch (SwitchToSmokeless.com and SwitchToSnus.com).
Comment posted April 2, 2009 @ 4:58 pm
Yes Virginia, nicotine is a drug and for some, a highly addictive one. Some studies have shown that it has more addictive qualities than cocaine. Alcohol is a drug. A surprising fact I learned when I was a nursing student forty some years ago. So why must marijuana remain illegal when it is not physically addictive like nicotine and less destructive then alcohol? Why must we keep feeding the prison industry with folks who like pot as a recreational drug? Why is it OK to allow drunk drivers numerous arrests and eventual taking of innocent lives, not to speak of millions of dollars in property and medical costs, while pot users are thrown in jail for smoking an herb that can get you high but who's effects can be negated within 15 minutes with ingestion of food or sugary drinks? Nicotine causes more spontaneous abortions and low birth weight babies than pot does. In fact, pot can relieve pregnancy related nausea. It doesn't have to be smoked to work. So let's stop this expensive billion dollar “war” on drugs. We have problems with legal drugs being abused so let's start treating addiction for what it is, an illness not a law enforcement problem.
Comment posted April 3, 2009 @ 5:33 am
Oh man! If cigarette companies have to disclose their ingredients, I can't wait to read the labels.
Comment posted April 3, 2009 @ 12:33 pm
Oh man! If cigarette companies have to disclose their ingredients, I can't wait to read the labels.
Comment posted May 18, 2011 @ 6:39 am
Cocaine, the most potent stimulant of natural origin, is extracted from the leaves of the coca plant (Erythroxylon coca),which is indigenous to the Andean highlands of South America. It is a potent brain stimulant and one of the most powerfully addictive drugs. Cocaine is produced as a white chunky powder. It is sold most often in aluminium foil, plastic or paper packets, or small vials.Cocaine is usually chopped into a fine powder with a razor blade on
a small mirror or some other hard surface, arranged into small rows called “lines,” then quickly inhaled (or “snorted”) through the nose with a short straw or rolled up paper money. It can also be injected into the blood stream
Cocaine addiction can occur very quickly and can be very difficult to break. Animal studies have shown that animals will work verry hard (press a bar over 10,000 times) for a single injection of cocaine, choose cocaine over food and water, and take cocaine even when this behaviour is punished. Animals must have their access to cocaine limited in order to prevent taking toxic or even lethal doses.
Researchers have found that cocaine stimulates the brain’s reward system inducing an even greater feeling of pleasure than natural functions. In turn, its influence on the reward circuit can lead a user to bypass survival ctivities and repeat drug use. Chronic cocaine use can lead to a cocaine addiction and in some cases damage the brain and other organs. An addict will continue to use cocaine even when faced with adverse consequences. Dependency can develop in less than 2 weeks. Some research indicates that a psychological dependency may develop after a single dose of high-potency cocaine. As the person develops a tolerance to cocaine, higher and higher doses are needed to produce the same level of euphoria.
Cocaine Addiction
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