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Tobacco Control 2001;10:181-183; doi:10.1136/tc.10.2.181
Copyright © 2001 by the BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.
Tob Control 2001;10:181-183 ( Summer )

Comparison of the nicotine content of tobacco used in bidis and conventional cigarettes

Jennifer L Malsona, Kristi Simsb, Ram Murtyb, Wallace B Pickwortha

a National Institute on Drug Abuse, Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, Maryland, USA, b Murty Pharmaceuticals Inc, Lexington, Kentucky, USA

Correspondence to: Wallace Pickworth, PhD, NIDA, Intramural Research Program, Addiction Research Center, 5500 Nathan Shock Drive, Baltimore, MD 21224, USA wpickwo{at}intra.nida.nih.gov

Received 29 June 2000; Revision received 23 October 2000; Accepted 6 February 2001

OBJECTIVE---To compare the nicotine content of 12 unfiltered brands of bidi cigarettes (hand rolled cigarettes imported from India) with 8 popular brands of filtered and unfiltered US and conventional cigarettes from India.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES---Identical laboratory procedures were used to determine nicotine content (in duplicate) and physical characteristics.
RESULTS---The nicotine concentration in the tobacco of bidi cigarettes (21.2 mg/g) was significantly greater than the tobacco from the commercial filtered (16.3 mg/g) and unfiltered cigarettes (13.5 mg/g).
CONCLUSIONS---Bidi cigarettes contain higher concentrations of nicotine than conventional cigarettes. Therefore, it is logical to presume that bidi smokers are at risk of becoming nicotine dependent. These findings belie a popular belief among US teens that bidis are a safe alternative to commercial cigarettes.


Keywords: bidis; beedies; youth

© 2001 by Tobacco Control
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