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FRIDAY, Dec. 19 (HealthDayNews) -- The most popular brands of smokeless tobacco may be the most addictive.

A report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that moist snuff brands with the highest market shares, such as Skoal, Copenhagen and Kodiak, have high amounts of "free-base" nicotine.

They contain the highest amounts of nicotine able to be readily absorbed by the body.

Smokeless tobacco with high levels of free-base nicotine can be rapidly absorbed in the mouth, something that is a major determinant of addiction.

The report, in the December issue of Nicotine & Tobacco Research, says the most popular brand of loose-leaf tobacco, Levi Garrett, also has the highest levels of free-base nicotine. But the report notes the relationship between nicotine content in loose-leaf tobacco and market share was not as consistent as that found with moist snuff.

The amount of free-base nicotine in smokeless tobacco can be controlled by manipulating the product's pH levels, some researchers suggest.

Tobacco companies are required to report the amount of nicotine in their smokeless tobacco products to the CDC. But the law requires that this information be kept confidential as a corporate trade secret.

"Consumers need to know that smokeless tobacco products, including loose-leaf and moist snuff, are not safe alternatives to smoking," researcher Patricia Richter says in a prepared statement.

"The amount of nicotine absorbed per dose from using smokeless tobacco is greater than the amount of nicotine absorbed from smoking one cigarette," she says.

More information

Here's where you can learn more about the health hazards of smokeless tobacco.

(SOURCE: Center for the Advancement of Health, news release, Dec. 16, 2003)

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