Cigarette nicotine levels rising

Even as measures to discourage smoking grew more stringent in recent years, a new report indicates that the nicotine content of cigarettes rose, making it tougher for smokers to quit.

From 1998 to 2004, the amount of nicotine that could be inhaled from cigarettes increased an average of 10 percent, the study by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health found. Nicotine is the chemical that causes cigarettes to be addictive, and the study, released Tuesday, found higher levels in all classes of cigarettes, including those branded "light."

During the past decade, aggressive campaigns across the nation have aimed to curb smoking, the leading cause of preventable deaths. Cities and states, including Massachusetts, have banned smoking in public places, and the price of cigarettes has soared. Still, smoking rates among U.S. adults stubbornly persist above 20 percent.

"We in public health have tried to spend a lot of time figuring out why people don't stop smoking," said Lois Keithly, director of the Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program. "It is more difficult to quit when there is a higher amount of nicotine in the cigarette."

Representatives of the three major tobacco makers in the United States — Lorillard Tobacco Co., Philip Morris USA and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. — declined to comment on the study and would not answer questions about the nicotine content of their products.

Tobacco control specialists not involved with the Massachusetts report described it as the first major study tracking nicotine in cigarettes in seven years. And those specialists said they believe that the findings reflect trends nationwide.

Industry documents turned over during landmark litigation in the 1990s that led tobacco companies to settle with state governments for billions of dollars showed that the companies routinely spiked the nicotine content of their products so that cigarettes would be more pleasurable and addictive. The state study, tobacco control specialists said, suggests that practice has persisted.

"Their efforts are focused on getting people addicted quickly and keeping them addicted," said Diane Pickles, executive director of Tobacco Free Massachusetts, an advocacy organization.

A 1996 state law required cigarette makers to test the nicotine content of their products using a method specified by the Department of Public Health and report the results annually. Most of the tests are conducted at an independent laboratory in Canada that uses a machine to simulate a typical smoker's puffing.