Cigarettes with ultralow nicotine levels are now being called the game-changer in the fight against smoking. If you are having trouble in quitting smoking, then, it is for you, that soon the Biden White House is expected to formally propose a plan that will order cigarette nicotine levels to be reduced, reports The Washington Post. For now though, it has been a failure, as these cigarettes, also known as VLN cigarettes that stands for very low nicotine are only available in 5,100 stores in 26 states. This is a very small fraction of the overall market for cigarettes. The company that makes it, 22nd Century, is struggling not because of the low supply, but also from the advocates who have long believed slashing nicotine levels altogether.

The Advent and ideation

Nicotine is a chemical that is produced naturally from tobacco that makes the cigarette and also keeps people hooked. While it is believed that it makes people alert, and get the "hit" to keep them going, it exposes the users to harmful substances, carcinogens, and increases the risk of heart disease, lung cancer, and other illness.

Ultralow-nicotine cigarettes, like the VLN brand, contain about 95% less nicotine than the regular cigarettes. The idea is quite simple: without the addictive grip of nicotine, smokers will find it easier to quit. Research too has shown some promise. For instance, the studies funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse revealed that very low nicotine cigarettes reduced addiction potential significantly without having users to increase their smoking frequency. However, the problem is, why would anyone choose for a low-nicotine that does not make them feel the same way, when the high-nicotine cigarette is right next to it, making them feel the same way, with the same alertness, sold at the same price.

“It’s very hard to imagine someone actively choosing to continue to use a low-nicotine product for the same price when a high-nicotine product is right next to it,” said Eric Donny, a Wake Forest University School of Medicine nicotine researcher.

No wonder, the experiment with low nicotine product by Philip Morris' Next cigarettes in the 1980s and Vector Tobacco's Quest brand in the early 2000s, flopped.

FDA's Role in the Push

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has supported the development of such products, even allowing VLN cigarettes to be marketed as lower-risk options. However, these products remain a niche market, available in only a fraction of U.S. stores.

Recently, the Biden administration has considered a bold step—mandating a dramatic reduction in nicotine levels for all cigarettes sold in the United States. Supporters believe this move could save millions of lives, while critics, including tobacco companies, warn of potential unintended consequences.

What Could Be The Challenges?

Resistance from Big Tobacco Companies: They could argue that slashing nicotine levels could backfire. Their claim is, smokers will turn to black markets or smoke more to satisfy their cravings, which may lead to greater exposure to harmful substances.

Consumer Reluctance: History is proof to the instances of smokers being hesitant to embrace the low-nicotine products.

Political Hurdle: It may face political roadblocks, as under the Trump administration, plans to cut nicotine were shelved.

Could Low-Nicotine Cigarettes Be The Solution?

Advocates believe that ultralow-nicotine cigarettes could be a game-changer, comparing them to decaf coffee or non-alcoholic beer—products that reduce harm while offering a similar experience.

Some experts warn that a black market for traditional cigarettes could undermine these efforts. They also stress the need for safer alternatives, such as vaping products, to support smokers transitioning away from traditional cigarettes.

India’s national capital is reporting a significant surge in influenza H1N1 cases. In the last 24 hours, Delhi reported 166 fresh H1N1 cases, up from 138 cases recorded the previous day, taking the cumulative tally to 2,612, officials said.

The total number of H1N1 cases in Delhi stood at 2,612, while cumulative Influenza-A cases were around 3,300, according to an official statement.

Delhi Reviews Hospital Preparedness

Health Minister Pankaj Kumar Singh inspected Indira Gandhi Hospital in Dwarka amid the rising number of H1N1 cases in the national capital and reviewed the hospital's and the Health Department's preparedness.

The Minister said he has been closely monitoring preparedness across hospitals.

Beyond Delhi, areas including Mumbai and Bengaluru have also reported a significant spike in H1N1 cases.

DG ICMR Dr. Rajiv Bahl said H1N1 in India is showing expected seasonal changes, with no unusual genetic shift detected.

“No cause for panic: seasonal influenza remains self-limiting; no new or unusual virus strain detected,” he added.

Doctors Flag Atypical H1N1 Symptoms

Dr. Atul Kakkar, Senior Consultant and Head of Department, Internal Medicine, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, told HealthandMe that H1N1 cases are significantly higher than last year, possibly due in part to seasonal changes.

Most patients are presenting with flu-like symptoms, including cold, cough, body aches and upper respiratory tract infections.

However, doctors are also seeing atypical symptoms.

“We are seeing patients having diarrhea also and myalgias, which are getting very, very frequent.”

Patients at extreme ages are more prone to complications and may require oxygen, high-flow oxygen, NIV or BiPAP, he said. Those at higher risk include people who are unvaccinated against flu, patients undergoing chemotherapy, and those with COPD, bronchial asthma, cancer or those on immunosuppressive treatment.

H1N1 Can Affect The Heart

As per experts, H1N1 infection may also be associated with cardiovascular complications, including:

• Heart inflammation
• Abnormal heartbeats
• Worsening heart failure

“Those with pre-existing heart conditions should be more vigilant whilst they’re recuperating. As the infection puts more work on the body, you can find that previous heart problems are more noticeable,” he added.

H1N1 Can Affect The Eyes

While H1N1 primarily causes fever and respiratory symptoms, some people also have some eye discomfort and sudden vision changes.

Dr. Maitri Jindal Chowdhary, Consultant, Ophthalmology: Yashoda Medicity told HealthandMe that eye symptoms during H1N1 may manifest as a bit of redness, watery eyes, some irritation or dryness, which should resolve as the H1N1 is overcome. But a change in vision definitely warrant an eye professional’s attention.

The expert said that vision changes such as blurry or double vision, acute vision loss, seeing flashes of light or floaters or a drop in your vision should be brought to the attention of an eye doctor. Don’t automatically attribute such vision changes to your “flu”.

"Some eye concerns are of course not as serious. There might be some watering of eyes, slight discomfort that resolve as you feel better. However if symptoms such as sudden blurry vision persists, if eye irritation persists or worsens – you need to get yourself checked out.

Likewise if you feel pain in the eye, there’s an alarming redness, a lot of light sensitivity, swelling or an discharge - go get those eyes checked out," Dr. Maitri told HealthandMe.

Be very careful if you wear contact lenses. Do not wear them if your eyes become red, painful or vision blurring as this could worsen the issue. Remove your contacts immediately and seek attention.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved updated COVID vaccines from Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech and Novavax-Sanofi for the 2026-27 season, the companies said.

Four COVID vaccines have been approved for use in the US after an advisory panel recommended that the shots target the dominant XFG variant.

What Are The New COVID Vaccines?

Moderna: mNEXSPIKE and Spikevax

• Spikevax: Approved for people aged 6 months through 64 who have an underlying condition, and anyone aged 65 or older.
• mNEXSPIKE: Approved for people aged 12 through 64 who have an underlying condition, and anyone aged 65 or older.

Pfizer-BioNTech: Comirnaty

It is approved for:

• All adults aged 65 and older.
• People aged 5 through 64 who have a condition that raises their risk of severe illness.

Novavax-Sanofi: Nuvaxovid

• Nuvaxovid is the only protein-based COVID vaccine available in the US. It is approved for everyone aged 65 and older and for those aged 12 through 64 who have underlying conditions.

The vaccine targets the JN.1 strain.

When Will The Updated Shots Be Available?

All manufacturers had previously said they could make the updated shots in time for the 2026-27 immunization season, although Novavax could take longer to manufacture its vaccine.

The Donald Trump administration had shelved the universal COVID vaccine recommendation. It now recommends that everyone aged 6 months and older consult a healthcare provider before getting the shot.

In May, eight of the committee's nine experts voted in favor of targeting the XFG variant for the 2026-27 campaign.

For the 2025-26 season, the FDA had recommended that COVID shots target LP.8.1, a subvariant of the JN.1 strain. The CDC has yet to make an official recommendation for this year's vaccines.

Experts say the vaccines should begin reaching pharmacies and doctors' offices in September, CNN reported.

What Is The Current COVID Situation In The US?

The CDC's latest respiratory illness data, updated August 21, shows that national and regional COVID-19 activity is increasing, although overall acute respiratory illness causing people to seek healthcare remains very low.

Doctors have been reporting an increase in patients testing positive through the summer. But some physicians are noticing a change in how the illness is presenting.

Reports have emerged stating that COVID is resurfacing with new symptoms including nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

COVID-19-related visits to the emergency room are also increasing.

Recent reports from doctors in Georgia describe patients arriving with gastrointestinal symptoms alongside, or sometimes instead of, the more familiar respiratory symptoms.

Although these symptoms may seem unusual compared with the classic COVID presentation, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea are not new symptoms of COVID-19.

The CDC has included nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea among the possible symptoms of COVID-19 for years.

Dr James Black, medical director of emergency services at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital in Albany, Georgia, said doctors are still seeing fever, cough and upper-respiratory symptoms, but added, “A lot of people are coming in with gastrointestinal symptoms - nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, sometimes to the point of mild dehydration.”

Even as the Ebola outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo Ebola virus continues to spread, a new case study has revealed a striking finding: the lesser-known virus can remain at very high levels in a patient’s throat.

Ebola viruses are primarily known to attack the vascular system, damaging blood vessel integrity and disrupting the body’s ability to clot. This can lead to severe fluid loss, organ failure and, in some cases, internal or external bleeding.

However, a case study of a 39-year-old American healthcare worker infected with Bundibugyo Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) found that his throat carried more than 10 times as much viral RNA as his blood.

The patient was later medically evacuated to Germany, where he received experimental treatment at a high-level isolation unit in Berlin.

Throat Carried 10 Times More Virus

On day five of illness, testing showed:

• Throat: About 90 million viral RNA copies/mL
• Blood plasma: About 7 million copies/mL
• Difference: The throat had more than 10 times the viral RNA found in blood.

The case was published in Nature Medicine by researchers from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, with collaborators including the CDC, US Department of State, Robert Koch Institute, Emory University and Congo’s Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale.

How Was He Exposed?

The healthcare worker had performed an ultrasound nine days before symptoms began.

Eight days before symptoms, he performed two surgeries using standard personal protective equipment and reported no specific high-risk exposure.

He voluntarily isolated himself when symptoms began. His early symptoms included:

• Severe muscle pain and malaise
• 38.9°C fever despite acetaminophen
• Positive pan-Ebola PCR on plasma by day two

By day three, he developed abdominal pain, vomiting, confusion and orthostatic symptoms.

Experimental Treatment Was Given

Bundibugyo Ebola virus has so far caused three recorded outbreaks, but there are currently no licensed vaccines or specific treatments for the disease.

The patient had received a dose of rVSV-ZEBOV 41 months earlier, but that vaccine targets the Zaire species.

He received the investigational antibody cocktail MBP134 on day four, along with a 200 mg loading dose of remdesivir off-label.

He reached Berlin on day five with thrombocytopenia, lymphopenia and elevated liver enzymes.

Viral RNA Cleared From Most Samples

By day 13, viral RNA was below detection levels in his:

• Plasma
• Throat
• Urine
• Stool

However, the virus was still detected in semen on day 20 but was gone by day 25. Three laboratories failed to culture live virus from throat, plasma or semen samples, the report said.

The researchers cautioned that this cannot be directly attributed to MBP134 because pre-treatment culture data were unavailable. The patient was discharged 22 days after symptom onset.

His Immune System Also Responded

Researchers found rising antibodies against the virus between days five and six, along with virus-specific IgM and IgA, suggesting that his own immune system mounted a response despite receiving monoclonal antibodies.

However, the researchers stressed that the case does not prove MBP134, remdesivir or their combination works. Larger studies are needed.

Congo Ebola Outbreak

Congo declared the outbreak in Ituri Province on May 15, 2026, followed by a WHO public health emergency of international concern two days later.

As of August 22, the ECDC reported:

• 5,514 confirmed cases
• 2,642 deaths
• 4,607 cases and 2,065 deaths in Ituri