ROANOKE, Va. – Many states have imposed bans on menthol-flavored cigarettes, but some flavoring products have populated the market, allowing both sellers and consumers to skirt around flavoring bans.
Carol Bovo, a postdoctoral researcher with Virginia Tech’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, has expressed concern about the use of these products.
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“Menthol reduces the harshness of cigarettes because it has almost a numbing or refreshing effect when you’re smoking.”
Carol Bovo, postdoctoral researcher with Virginia Tech’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Currently, 35% of American adults who smoke cigarettes daily are using menthol-flavored cigarettes.
Menthol cards are commonly used to infuse menthol into cigarettes after purchase. These products are nicotine-free and sold separately from tobacco, so they aren’t subject to the same regulations.
Smoking is still one of the leading preventable causes of death in the U.S., and Bovo’s research is intended to help reduce that statistic.
“One of the things we study that we need to consider is that sometimes drugs work in a system. A majority of heavy users don’t use just one substance. So you have to be concerned about how that may affect the system as a whole.”
Carol Bovo, postdoctoral researcher with Virginia Tech’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Bovo has received a Postdoctoral Excellence Award, which will support the research.
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