Racial and ethnic differences in initiation of menthol tobacco smoking and subsequent tobacco use in the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study, Waves 1-4 (2013-2018).

Use of menthol flavors in tobacco products is confirmed to be a contributor to large disparities in tobacco use; Black and Hispanic people are more likely to maintain smoking through use of mentholated products than non-Hispanic White people. The findings suggest educational and regulatory actions on menthol-flavored tobacco products including restricting the selective marketing to vulnerable communities and banning characterizing flavors in cigarettes and cigars may reduce tobacco-related disparities and inform the FDA's evidence-based rulemaking process.