Pi. Clark et al., EFFECT OF MENTHOL CIGARETTES ON BIOCHEMICAL MARKERS OF SMOKE EXPOSUREAMONG BLACK-AND-WHITE SMOKERS, Chest, 110(5), 1996, pp. 1194-1198
Study objectives: Black smokers have been reported to have higher seru
m cotinine levels than do white smokers, and have higher rates of most
smoking-related diseases, despite smoking fewer cigarettes per day. A
nother striking racial difference is the preference for mentholated ci
garettes among black smokers. The contribution of menthol to variabili
ty in biochemical markers of cigarette smoke exposure (end-expiratory
carbon monoxide and serum cotinine) was evaluated in a biracial sample
. Design: Descriptive cross-sectional. Setting: A university smoking r
esearch laboratory. Participants: Sixty-five black and 96 white adult
established smokers who were paid for their participation. Measurement
s: Information was obtained through direct observation, self-report (i
nterview and self-administered questionnaires), measurement of butts c
ollected for a week, and laboratory analyses of the biochemical marker
s of exposure. Results: Compared with the white smokers, the black smo
kers had significantly higher cotinine and carbon monoxide levels per
cigarette smoked and per millimeter of smoked tobacco rod (both p<0.00
1). After adjusting for race, cigarettes per day, and mean amount of e
ach cigarette smoked, menthol was associated with higher cotinine leve
ls (p=0.03) and carbon monoxide concentrations (p=0.02). Conclusions:
The use of methanol may be associated with increased health risks of s
moking. Menthol use should be considered when biochemical markers of s
moke exposure are used as quantitative measures of smoking intensity o
r as indicators of compliance with smoking reduction programs. In addi
tion, the effect of menthol on total ''dose'' should be considered in
any efforts to regulate the amount of nicotine in cigarettes.