The US Food and Drug Administration is proposing limits on the level of nicotine in cigarettes and some other types of tobacco products in order to make them less addictive, the agency announced Wednesday.

“If finalized, the United States would be the first country globally to take such a bold, life-saving action to prevent and reduce smoking-related disease and death,” the FDA said in a statement.

Nicotine is highly addictive, and studies show that a policy that lowers nicotine levels in products would help millions of people quit smoking or smoke less. Most smokers surveyed have said they regret starting and want to quit.

Most people who smoke started as kids, studies show, even though the legal age to buy tobacco was 18 for many years and raised to 21 in 2019. If nicotine levels were lowered, experts say, young people may still try tobacco products out of curiosity, but they would be less likely to form a lifelong habit.

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