To address the question of whether progressively lowering nicotine content in cigarettes can reduce or eliminate nicotine dependence in low socioeconomic smokers, we will randomize smokers to either an Reduced Nicotine Content group with a gradual step-wise reduction in nicotine from 11 mg to 0.2 mg per cigarette in five 3-wk stages, or a control group with nicotine content similar to their preferred usual brand of cigarettes.
Overall, we hypothesize that low socioeconomic smokers who switch to progressively lower nicotine cigarettes will initially alter their smoking behavior to compensate for lower nicotine until cigarette nicotine yields become so low that complete compensation becomes too difficult. At that point, smokers will either drop-out or continue to smoke the reduced nicotine content cigarettes but with incomplete compensatory behaviors.
