Communicating about cigarette smoke constituents

Abstract

Objectives: The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is required to report quantities of harmful and potentially harmful constituents (HPHCs) in cigarette smoke in an "understandable and not misleading" manner. If smokers mistakenly believe that HPHC quantities indicate degree of harmfulness, they might switch brands instead of quitting. Methods: In a national online survey, 1709 adult smokers viewed facts about HPHCs and their quantities, with variations in content (numbers only or numbers with additional information) and format (graphic or non-graphic). We examined participants' understanding of key facts and how misled they were about the meaning of HPHC quantities. Results: Many smokers did not understand basic HPHC information even immediately after reading it. Up to one-third were misled or potentially misled about the relationship between chemical quantities and possible health harms. When viewing information about chemical-related health harms rather than just numbers, smokers were more likely to understand the information but also more likely to be misled. Graphic format was helpful only when matched with specific content types. Conclusions: The FDA should emphasize that HPHC quantities are not equivalent to degree of harmfulness, particularly if mentioning chemical-related health harms. Maximizing the understandability of HPHC quantity information while minimizing misleadingness will be challenging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]