KOOP SAYS SMOKERS WILL SHUN CIGARETTES BUT NOT NICOTINE

The former surgeon general predicts gum will replace puffing for many who
want to cut risks but need their fix.

PHILADELPHIA-The next few years may see a marked increase in people who
quit smoking but continue to satisfy their nicotine addiction in different
ways, Dr. C. Everett Koop, former U.S. surgeon general, predicted Sunday.

"I think you'll find among the 45 million Americans now addicted to
nicotine that several will decide they just can't shake their addiction,
but they'll quit smoking anyway to avoid the many health risks it brings,"
Koop told reporters at the annual meeting of the American Association for
the Advancement of Science.

"People will use inhalers, patches and chewing gum to get their nicotine
fix without smoking," he predicted.

Nicotine does pose a health risk for pregnant women and anyone with
coronary problems, but that risk is significantly less than the overall
threat posed by smoking, which is associated with one in five deaths, Koop
said.

The former surgeon general has been working to get American public health
organizations to form a consensus so they can speak with one voice on the
smoking issue as Congress considers how to handle the settlement worked out
between the tobacco industry and several state attorneys general.

"The settlement has practically unraveled as it comes before Congress,"
Koop said. "The climate has changed in Congress, and things that were once
unthinkable have become quite possible."

Revelations about the tobacco industry's efforts to sell cigarettes to
children and to hide their addictive nature has aroused disgust in Congress
even among many longtime friends of the industry, Koop said.

But he expressed caution about declaring a victory.

"I think the industry is so smart, it can devise ways of getting around
almost anything," he said.

One obvious step by tobacco companies would be to boost foreign sales to
make up for any reductions in the United States, Koop said.

"In the world market for tobacco, the United States accounts for only about
8 to 10 percent," he said. "The U.S. tobacco companies could make up for
losing their entire domestic market with just two years of promotion in
Asia, and I'm sure they count on doing that."