As e-cigarettes face increasing regulation and oversight, a novel and intriguing product is quietly gaining popularity among younger generations: nicotine pouches.
What Are Nicotine Pouches?
Nicotine pouches are small, rectangular pouches, similar in size to chewing gum, but without tobacco. Instead, they contain nicotine along with other auxiliary ingredients, such as stabilizers, sweeteners, and flavorings. These pouches are placed between the gum and upper lip, allowing nicotine to be absorbed through the oral mucosa. Without smoke or odor, users can achieve the desired nicotine effect in 15 to 30 minutes, offering a smoke-free alternative for those seeking nicotine intake.
How to Use Nicotine Pouches?
The process of using nicotine pouches is simple and convenient. Just gently place the pouch in your mouth between your gums and lip—there's no need to swallow . Nicotine is slowly released through the oral mucosa and enters your bloodstream. The entire experience can last up to an hour, allowing you to enjoy nicotine while maintaining oral cleanliness and comfort.
Rapid Growth: The Rise of Nicotine Pouches
In recent years, sales of nicotine pouches have skyrocketed. From just over $20 million in 2015, the market is projected to reach $23.6 billion by 2030. This rapid growth has captured the attention of major tobacco companies.
British American Tobacco (BAT) invested in and launched VELO nicotine pouches, Imperial Tobacco introduced ZONEX, Altria launched ON, and Japan Tobacco (JTI) released NORDIC SPIRIT.
Why Are Nicotine Pouches So Popular?
Nicotine pouches have quickly gained popularity due to their unique smoke-free and odorless qualities, making them suitable for a wide range of settings. Whether at airports or indoors, nicotine pouches allow users to satisfy their nicotine cravings without disturbing others. Additionally, compared to e-cigarettes and traditional tobacco products, nicotine pouches currently face less regulatory scrutiny, making them more appealing to consumers.
Why Are Nicotine Pouches So Popular?
There are currently many nicotine pouch brands, and these products attract consumers with their "smoke-free" convenience, ease of use, and ability to reduce secondhand smoke exposure. However, this emerging tobacco alternative also has inherent flaws. A can of branded nicotine pouches costs around $5 and contains 15 pouches, each recommended for use between 30 minutes to an hour. For heavy nicotine users, this may mean a can per day, while moderate to light users might stretch a can for a week.
Priced between traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches are relatively affordable, making them easily accessible to teens. Their "smoke-free" and "oral" usage makes it difficult for places like schools to monitor them, which could lead to stricter regulations in the future.
Health and Safety: The Uncharted Territory of Nicotine Pouches
Currently nicotine pouches have not been formally classified as smokeless tobacco, meaning the FDA does not regulate them as strictly as cigarettes or other tobacco products. Due to a lack of long-term data, it's currently unclear whether using these pouches is safer. Users may claim that they pose relatively lower risks compared to cigarettes and e-cigarettes, but like other forms of oral nicotine, regular and prolonged use may increase the risk of localized oral health issues.
Post time: Oct-19-2024
