Is the minty freshness of menthol cigarettes more addicting than regular cigarettes?

Stay tuned for the lawsuit, folks.

From CBC News: Menthol and regular cigarettes appear to be equally harmful to the cardiovascular system and lungs, but smokers of menthols may have a harder time butting out for good, new research suggests.

In a study that followed more than 1,500 smokers over 15 years, U.S. researchers found that those who smoked menthol cigarettes in 1985 were more likely to still be smoking in 2000: almost 70 per cent of those whose tobacco of choice was menthol were still smoking compared with about 55 per cent of those who chose regular cigarettes.

The authors found that smoking menthols was associated with “a lower likelihood of trying to quit in the first place.”

The reason why is totally gross. Researchers think menthol “anesthesizes nerve endings in the throat and air passages, smokers may inhale deeper and be able to tolerate more cigarettes.” That’s disgusting, but not as disgusting as those “look at all the fat in this dead aorta” commercials that we non-smokers are forced to watch. Those commercials are a mental health hazard. Yuck

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