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(NaturalNews) A proposed law that would give the FDA the authority to regulate tobacco products have garnered a wide degree of support -- including from Philip Morris, the world's largest tobacco company.

The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Regulation Act would give the FDA the same authority to regulate tobacco products that it currently has to regulate foods, drugs and medical devices. This means that the FDA would be responsible for approving all new tobacco products (but not products already on the market) and for regulating the levels of harmful ingredients in tobacco products and smoke.

Cigarette smoke contains an estimated 4,000 chemicals, and more than 40 have been identified as carcinogens.

The act would also strengthen the health warnings on tobacco products and prohibit the use of false claims in marketing, including "light" and "low tar." It would place stricter restrictions on the advertising of tobacco products.

According to some critics, it is this last clause that has led Philip Morris to support the proposed law. "If you make it more difficult to communicate with smokers, and you have half the market, it results in the market share getting locked in," said John W. Singleton, director of communication for Reynolds American, Inc., the second largest tobacco company in the United States. "If you get locked in at 50 percent, that's pretty good. The bill gives Phillip Morris a competitive advantage."

Cigarette brands produced by Reynolds American subsidiaries include Camel, Kool, Pall Mall, Salem and Winston.

Philip Morris subsidiary Philip Morris USA is the largest tobacco producer in the United States, controlling 50 percent of the consumer market. Philip Morris brands include Marlboro, the most popular cigarette brand in the world.

According to Philip Morris USA President Howard Willard, the company supports the proposed law because FDA regulation of tobacco products has been called for by the U.S. Institute of Medicine.

Why would Big Tobacco support regulation of tobacco?

Why the FDA doesn't want to regulate tobacco

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Related Articles: • Big Tobacco and Big Pharma: same tactics, different chemicals • Doctors, American Medical Association hawked cigarettes as healthy for consumers • Should the FDA Regulate Tobacco? Health Freedom Advocate Says Criminalizing Cigarettes is a Mistake	Take Action: Support NaturalNews.com Email this article to a friend Share this article on: NewsVine | digg | del.icio.us Permalink to this article: http://www.NaturalNews.com/022922_tobacco_Philip_Morris_FDA_regulation.html Reprinting this article: Non-commercial use OK, cite NaturalNews.com with clickable link. Embed article link: (copy HTML code below): <a href = "http://www.NaturalNews.com/022922_tobacco_Philip_Morris_FDA_regulation.html">Why Philip Morris Supports FDA Regulation of Tobacco</a>