Assessing the sensory role of nicotine in cigarette smoking.

Thirty-two subjects were tested in five double-blind sessions (16 subjects in the morning following overnight smoking abstention, and 16 in the afternoon following ad-lib smoking). In each session, subjects smoked one of five experimental (EX) cigarettes having the following FTC nicotine/"tar' yields in mg: 0.08/8.5, 0.17/9.1, 0.37/9.8, 0.48/9.8, and 0.74/10.4. In a sixth session, subjects smoked a 0.71/8.6 commercial "light' (CL) cigarette that was their usual brand. Before and after smoking, subjects subjectively rated their desire to smoke a cigarette of their usual brand and had blood samples drawn. Following smoking, subjects rated the cigarette on a variety of sensory dimensions; they also rated smoking satisfaction. Analysis of variance indicated that nicotine played an important sensory role for a variety of dimensions related to cigarette taste and sensory impact but not perceived draw. Principal-components analyses indicated that sensory factors were at least as important as nicotine pharmacology (indirectly indexed by the pre-to post-smoking rise in blood nicotine concentration) when considering smoking's overall effects on satisfaction, product acceptance, and reduction in desire to smoke.