{"entity":{"id":"idea-prev-very-low-nicotine-mandate","kind":"idea","name":"Make cigarettes non-addictive by capping their nicotine","aka":[],"tldr":"Cigarettes with nicotine cut by 95% do not sustain addiction. A mandatory cap, which the FDA has proposed, could cut smoking dramatically.","summary":"Randomised trials show cigarettes with nicotine cut by 95% reduce consumption and increase quitting. The FDA issued a proposed product standard in January 2025. Propose finalisation and adoption by other regulators, with pre-planned surveillance of compensatory smoking, illicit trade, and switching to alternatives.","asOf":"2026-09-08","links":[{"label":"FDA tobacco products","url":"https://www.fda.gov/tobacco-products"}],"tags":[],"related":[],"cancers":["nsclc"],"sections":["prevention"],"technologies":[],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":["b-prevention-adoption"],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"hypothesis":"A nicotine cap reduces adult smoking prevalence by at least 30% within five years of implementation.","rationale":"Addiction requires nicotine; supply-side product standards avoid relying on individual behaviour change.","test":"Adoption in one jurisdiction with synthetic-control evaluation of prevalence and sales.","maturity":"being-tested-at-scale","actor":"regulator","cost":"small","horizonYears":5},"route":"/ideas/idea-prev-very-low-nicotine-mandate/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"nsclc","kind":"cancer","name":"Non-small-cell lung cancer","route":"/cancers/nsclc/"}],"section":[{"id":"prevention","kind":"section","name":"Prevention & Risk","route":"/fronts/prevention/"}],"bottleneck":[{"id":"b-prevention-adoption","kind":"bottleneck","name":"Prevention we already have is not deployed","route":"/bottlenecks/b-prevention-adoption/"}]}}