[Determination of amounts of tar, nicotine, carbon monoxide, and tobacco-specific nitrosamines in the fillers of and mainstream smoke from privately imported cigarettes].

Objective: The tobacco tax in Japan was increased in October, 2010. Subsequently, the quantity of sales of domestic cigarette products decreased temporarily. However, smokers could import cigarettes directly through the internet. Because of the high value of the yen and the low price of foreign cigarettes, an individual could import cigarettes easily; however, the contents and emissions from privately imported cigarettes have not been investigated yet. In this study, we carried out a comparative analysis of domestic and privately imported cigarettes.

Methods: Privately imported cigarettes from five brands and domestic cigarettes from the brand "Mild Seven" were selected for the study. For the fillers of the cigarettes, the levels of nicotine and tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) were determined by methods that are usually used for cigarette products. For the mainstream smoke, the levels of tar, nicotine, carbon monoxide, and TSNAs were also determined by the methods used for cigarettes.

Results: The average nicotine and TSNA levels in the fillers of the domestic cigarettes were 15.1 ± 0.19 mg/g and 1,920 ± 85.1 ng/g, respectively. The amounts of nicotine and tar in the mainstream smoke from the privately imported cigarettes were lower than those from the domestic cigarettes. However, the levels of TSNAs in the mainstream smoke from the privately imported cigarettes were higher than those from the domestic cigarettes.

Conclusions: The amounts of TSNAs in the fillers of and mainstream smoke from the privately imported cigarettes were higher than those from the domestic cigarettes. Japanese smokers should be careful about consuming privately imported cigarettes because there is a variation in the amount of hazardous constituents in these cigarettes, even when they are from the same brand.