ammonia

added in the form of ammonium hydroxide or diammonium phosphate

Why is it in cigarettes?

• Added to increase nicotine in gas or "free-based" form in the smoke.
• Speeds up and increases nicotine's "hit".
• Reduces amount of nicotine measured by smoking machine tests.

What does it mean?

• The nicotine hits your brain faster.
• The addiction is stronger and harder to beat.
• Nicotine levels on cigarette packs don't actually tell you the amount of nicotine you'll get if you smoke that cigarette.

More...

Ammonia turns normal nicotine into free-based nicotine. This process "is similar to the process used to heighten the effects of cocaine," and "can boost the availability of nicotine up to 100 times."[1] Free-based nicotine is already in a gas form, so once it is in the lungs it moves quickly into the bloodstream and to waiting nicotine receptors. Without ammonia, nicotine in burned tobacco smoke is a solid, tiny particle that must travel on the smoke stream into the smoker's lungs, and there is absorbed more slowly. Ammonia in the cigarette increases the pH of the smoke and turns some of the nicotine solid into a gas. This means that with ammonia included, the same amount of nicotine will have a stronger physiological effect on the smoker. Marlboro and Kool brands saw a dramatic increase in their market share when they began to include ammonia. Now ammonia is a common ingredient, usually found in the form of ammonium hydroxide or diammonium phosphate.[2][3]

The free-based nicotine is not detectable on the standard smoking machine that the U.S. government has used for measuring the tar and nicotine content of cigarette brands. Adding ammonia to a cigarette brand would cause its measured nicotine levels to go down, while in fact it will be delivering at least the same amount of nicotine and in a more highly-addictive method. Smokers who try to wean themselves from their nicotine addiction by selecting low-nicotine brands are not getting accurate numbers, and may actually be choosing a more addictive product.[1]

Links

A very good resource for more information on ammonia in cigarettes: http://www.ash.org.uk/?additives Section 3

References

[1] online column: "Ammonia Added to Cigarettes Can Significantly Boost Availability of Nicotine, Says New Study" August, 1997. National Drug Strategy News Briefs - see: http://www.ndsn.org/AUGUST97/AMMONIA.html

[2] online report: Action on Smoking and Health, Tobacco additives: cigarette engineering and nicotine addiction, July 1999. Section 3. http://www.ash.org.uk/?additives

[3] website: "Brand by Brand Ingredients", Philip Morris USA - see:http://www.philipmorrisusa.com/company_&_products/what_is_in_my_brand.asp

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