R.J. Reynolds has packaged Camel No. 9 cigarettes in black, fuscia and teal boxes adorned with flowers and the slogan "Light and Luscious." Health groups say the product is a cynical marketing ploy aimed at getting young women to smoke, the Associated Press reported Aug. 15.

A letter sent by American Legacy Foundation president Cheryl Healton to R.J. Reynolds chair Susan Ivey calls on the company to withdraw Camel No. 9 from the market, and is cosigned by dozens of women's and health groups.

"This product is nothing more than a veiled attempt to sell more cigarettes to girls and young women, putting them at grave risk for disease and a premature death," the letter stated. Meanwhile, a group of Congressional lawmakers has so far failed to get women's magazines to stop accepting ads for the product.

The publisher of Vogue replied that Congress should draft regulations if it doesn't want to ads published, while a Glamour official said that the ads are legal.

"It's just flat out hypocritical to run stories about becoming more beautiful and healthy while promoting a dangerous product responsible for killing hundreds of thousands of people a year," said Rep. Lois Capps (D-Calif.).

A R.J. Reynolds spokesperson said that Camel No. 9 is marketed to adults and that half the audience is male.