France has banned online sales of nicotine gum and patches after researchers suggested that nicotine may help protect against the coronavirus, reports the BBC. Sales of nicotine products are now restricted to pharmacies.
The French government says people will be allowed to buy only one month’s supply of these products, with pharmacies registering buyers.
The goal is to stop people putting too much nicotine into their bodies and to protect the supply for people who need it.
Last week, data from a Paris hospital indicated that smokers were statistically less likely to be admitted for treatment for Covid-19.
The revelation triggered a run on nicotine products.
The theory that nicotine could play a role in blocking the virus is due to be tested at a hospital in Paris, using nicotine patches.
The government’s chief health official said the study was interesting but warned that smoking killed 75,000 people a year in France.
The official also warned that smokers who did become infected with coronavirus tended to have more serious symptoms.
France has reported nearly 22,000 coronavirus-related deaths since the start of the outbreak earlier this year.