Flavored tobacco products represent a significant public health concern, particularly for youth populations. Research indicates that eight out of ten U.S. youth who have tried tobacco began with flavored products, with e-cigarettes becoming the most commonly used tobacco product among youth since 2014. Over 1.4 million youth reported current e-cigarette use in 2025, with approximately 90 percent using flavored varieties like cotton candy, bubblegum, mango, and mint. Menthol specifically poses particular risks, as it numbs the throat and reduces tobacco harshness, increasing appeal and addiction potential, while targeting has disproportionately affected Black Americans, who experience 50,000 smoking-related deaths annually. In response, Massachusetts became the first state to ban flavored tobacco sales in November 2019, followed by California in 2022. Additional states including New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Utah have implemented partial restrictions on flavored e-cigarettes, while over 420 local jurisdictions have enacted flavor restrictions. These policy measures aim to reduce youth access and initiation while advancing health equity across communities historically targeted by tobacco industry marketing.

The Department of Health and Social Care has submitted an options assessment evaluating proposals to restrict the display of vaping, nicotine, and tobacco products in England. The assessment explores extending existing tobacco display restrictions to comprehensively cover all tobacco products, tobacco-related devices, herbal smoking products, cigarette papers, vaping products, and other nicotine products. The intervention aims to reduce consumption of these products and improve public health outcomes, while acknowledging vaping's potential role in smoking cessation. The options assessment progresses multiple shortlisted options for both tobacco and vapes through consultation, having evaluated various alternatives to regulation. The Regulatory Policy Committee determined the assessment is fit for purpose, with satisfactory small and micro business impact analysis and a clear preferred approach. The scorecard adequately summarizes expected business impacts. The evaluation plan incorporates robust monitoring mechanisms, specific review timelines, evaluation questions, and identified data sources, whilst considering potential unintended consequences. The assessment could be strengthened by monetizing anticipated health benefits, and all shortlisted options will now proceed to public consultation to inform final policy decisions.

Vape product export success now depends critically on regulatory compliance rather than market size alone. Companies entering international markets face increasingly complex and divergent regulatory frameworks that extend beyond traditional nicotine oversight to encompass product classification, emissions testing, ingredient review, youth-access controls, battery safety, and environmental handling requirements. A device designed for one market may fail authorization, distribution, or insurance requirements in another without substantial redesign. Disposable devices face heightened scrutiny in jurisdictions with stringent waste policies, while refillable pod systems often trigger complicated filing and toxicological assessments. The same vapor product may be regulated simultaneously as a tobacco product, consumer electronic device, chemical mixture, and waste-management concern, creating layered compliance burdens. Market evaluation should prioritize classification logic and authorization pathways before assessing distributor appetite or competitive positioning. The United States requires premarket authorization for nicotine products, while the European Union's TPD framework imposes structured notification and labeling demands. Emerging markets present additional complexity with newer, less harmonized, and unevenly enforced regulations. Strategic market entry now requires early-stage regulatory pathway assessment to avoid costly late-stage redesigns and commercialization delays.

The tobacco industry has strategically migrated from traditional marketing to digital platforms, targeting vulnerable adolescents through sophisticated algorithms and influencer marketing rather than conventional advertising methods. According to WHO data, approximately 37 million adolescents aged 13-15 globally use tobacco products, with e-cigarette consumption among children exceeding adult rates in many countries. In Ukraine, the situation is particularly acute, with 45% of young people aged 18-29 using tobacco or nicotine products, often consuming multiple types simultaneously. Platforms like TikTok and Instagram employ behavioral targeting and recommendation systems that automatically expose users to vape-related content, including "vape tricks" videos that algorithmically proliferate. Corporations circumvent official advertising bans by partnering with micro-influencers whose sponsored content appears as native recommendations, bypassing critical thinking. A USC Keck School of Medicine study using artificial intelligence documented a 100% increase in e-cigarette brand mentions on TikTok between 2019 and 2022. This exposure creates an "illusion of social norm," where teenagers perceive vaping as mainstream. As Ukraine pursues EU membership, addressing this digital-age nicotine epidemic requires fundamentally new regulatory approaches targeting platform algorithms and influencer marketing rather than traditional tobacco control strategies.

E-cigarettes are widely perceived as safer alternatives to tobacco, leading many parents to vape near infants and children without recognizing the risks of third-hand e-cigarette aerosol (THEA). This residue, consisting of nicotine, carbonyls, and reaction products, deposits on indoor surfaces and can be re-emitted, ingested, or absorbed through skin contact. A study by Zaman et al., published in Pediatric Research, exposed neonatal mice to THEA-contaminated terrycloth and carpet to investigate developmental consequences. The research revealed significant sex-divergent outcomes: female mice experienced transient neutrophilic inflammation, while males exhibited broader transcriptional disturbance, delayed alveolar maturation, gut microbiome shifts, and persistent adult obstructive lung dysfunction, with tobacco flavoring amplifying the male response. These findings are critical because despite widespread vaping among reproductive-age adults, vape-free home rules remain far less common than smoke-free legislation. The study strengthens the case for extending smoke-free protections to vaping, addressing a previously under-researched but important gap in understanding THEA's effects on developing lungs.

FDA enforcement of e-cigarette regulations is widely regarded as failing. Because e-cigarettes meet the definition of a ‘new tobacco product’, to legally market an e-cigarette in the USA, a manufacturer must submit a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) to the FDA and receive a written marketing order. E-cigarettes that are marketed without an FDA marketing order are considered adulterated, misbranded and unlawful. The FDA has issued marketing orders authorising the legal sale of 34 e-cigarette products and devices, including four menthol-flavoured products, and has denied applications for more than 26 million products.5 But even in the absence of more FDA PMTA marketing orders, virtually any visit to a vape shop, convenience store or gas station nationwide reveals open displays of hundreds of brands of flavoured e-cigarettes. Except for the four menthol products with FDA marketing orders, every single brand of flavoured e-cigarette lacks FDA authorisation.

E-cigarette companies increasingly employ sophisticated corporate political activities (CPAs) that mirror the historical strategies of the traditional tobacco industry. This study examines the power dynamics within JUUL Labs's CPAs by applying the Temporal Three-Dimensional Power Framework to analyze both the dimensions of power and their temporal evolution. Critical Discourse Study approaches were used to analyze 82 corporate internal documents produced between 2017 and 2020 and to identify how power operates within these activities. We mapped JUUL Labs's CPAs to five strategies—displacing public health, managing reputations, influencing policy-making, manufacturing support, and shaping evidence—and performed a power analysis, leveraging three dimensions of power: visible power through lobbying and funding; hidden power via agenda-setting by mobilizing “Thought Leaders” (influencers in different areas who have expressed specific views or attitudes to the e-cigarette industry); and invisible power through ideological mobilization. We further demonstrate how these power dimensions accumulate, transform, and reconstruct over time to extend corporate influence.

Having a law that bans vaping may not be enough; it needs to be complemented with more comprehensive marketing restrictions on social media platforms and effective enforcement of bans on social media promotions from overseas.

Nixodine is a synthetic nicotine alternative marketed as a tobacco-free product, typically composed of nicotinamide (vitamin B3) and a nicotine analogue called 6-methylnicotine (6-MN). Manufactured by a company holding five U.S. patents filed between April 2024 and December 2025, Nixodine is sold in vapes and pouches as a lab-derived alkaloid designed to produce nicotine-like effects without using tobacco or traditional nicotine. The manufacturer promotes it as smoother and potentially less toxic than conventional nicotine, though these safety claims lack independent verification. Scientific researchers caution that 6-MN could prove more toxic and addictive than nicotine itself, and long-term public research remains limited. Product formulations vary across different brands and versions, creating inconsistency in strength and composition. This emerging category, alongside competing products like metatine, represents newly commercialized nicotine alternatives operating in a regulatory gray area where safety data remains incomplete and state laws continue evolving. The rapid patent activity and limited independent testing underscore the need for continued scrutiny and consumer awareness regarding these novel substances.

The tobacco and nicotine industry has significantly expanded its product portfolio to include e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches, heated tobacco devices, and nicotine strips, employing aggressive marketing tactics particularly targeting young people. Nicotine pouches—small, smokeless products like Zyn, On!, and Velo that deliver synthetic or extracted nicotine between the gum and lip—have seen explosive growth, with monthly sales increasing 269.2% nationally between January 2023 and December 2025. Despite marketing claims of reduced harm and tobacco-free formulations, these products lack independent safety verification and contain dangerously high nicotine levels that can addict developing brains. In Minnesota, 5.2% of high school students reported trying nicotine pouches as of 2023. Mint flavoring dominates the market at 58.8% of sales, with social media influencer promotion and rewards programs driving youth appeal. Nicotine strips, previously withdrawn from the market, have resurged with concerning youth misuse potential. While some states have implemented flavor restrictions, stronger federal regulations and enhanced public awareness remain critical to address these emerging public health threats affecting adolescents.

In July 2024, the European Anti-Fraud Office successfully dismantled two international tobacco trafficking organizations operating in Spain, seizing over 20 million cigarettes, 40 tonnes of tobacco, manufacturing equipment, and arresting 50 individuals across six provinces. This operation exemplifies effective cross-border coordination and months of investigative work. However, the raid underscores a persistent challenge: Operation NOXIA II in late 2025 seized 149.5 million cigarettes and 105 tonnes of tobacco, demonstrating that illicit tobacco markets remain resilient despite enforcement efforts. KPMG data reveals the troubling trajectory—illicit cigarette consumption in the EU27 reached 41.8 billion units in 2025, representing 10.3 percent of total consumption and €16.7 billion in lost tax revenue, up from 48.3 billion units (9.1 percent) in 2016 across the EU28. While enforcement has intensified, successful prosecutions alone prove insufficient; stable pricing and limited excise increases are equally critical to combating illicit tobacco trafficking.

Smoking remains a leading cause of cardiovascular disease, accounting for approximately one-third of the 8.7 million annual smoking-related deaths. The tobacco industry has developed heated tobacco products (HTPs) as purportedly less harmful alternatives to conventional cigarettes, yet HTPs still emit toxicants associated with tobacco smoke. Industry-funded studies suggest HTPs produce less detrimental cardiovascular effects than conventional cigarettes, while independent research reports more concerning findings, indicating HTPs may cause arrhythmias, arterial stiffness, and cardiovascular disease with comparable risk levels. Six independent intervention studies involving 17 to 40 conventional smokers documented significant cardiovascular alterations following HTP use, including changes in blood pressure, heart rate, and arterial stiffness. A randomized crossover trial of 40 smokers found HTPs increased inflammatory biomarkers similarly to conventional cigarettes but caused less endothelial dysfunction and arterial stiffness. Another study of 22 smokers demonstrated comparable cardiovascular impacts between HTPs and conventional cigarettes. These findings highlight discrepancies between industry and independent assessments, underscoring the need for rigorous evaluation of HTP safety claims and their true cardiovascular risk profile relative to traditional smoking.

The UK government is advancing its commitment to creating a smoke-free nation by addressing tobacco and vaping through comprehensive packaging and display regulations. The initiative reflects a shared goal across all four UK nations to protect future generations from tobacco harm and nicotine addiction while moving healthcare from treatment to prevention. Currently, 5.3 million UK adults aged 18 and over are active smokers, representing 10.6% of the population, despite declining smoking prevalence. Tobacco remains the single most preventable cause of illness and death in the UK, responsible for approximately 80,000 annual deaths and causing up to two-thirds of mortality in current smokers. The substance significantly increases risks of cancer—accounting for one in four cancer deaths in England—alongside contributing to lung cancer, premature heart disease, stroke, heart failure, and dementia. Additionally, smoking poses serious maternal and infant health risks, including elevated stillbirth and childhood asthma rates. This policy consultation on tobacco and vape packaging, appearance, and display represents a critical intervention point, leveraging product presentation regulations to reduce appeal, particularly among young people, thereby supporting broader public health objectives and reducing smoking-related healthcare burden on the NHS.

The World Health Organization and United Nations define young people as those aged 10 to 24 years, encompassing adolescents (10-19) and youth (15-24). Tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship (TAPS) has historically driven global tobacco consumption by portraying smoking as desirable rather than dangerous to young audiences. Research demonstrates that young people are particularly vulnerable to tobacco marketing, with exposure linked to increased likelihood of smoking initiation. Although the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) and global regulations have restricted marketing, transnational tobacco companies (TTCs) continue developing sophisticated strategies to target youth and secure future customers. As of 2024, 183 FCTC parties have implemented TAPS restrictions covering 90 percent of the global population, with some countries implementing additional measures like banning tobacco retail outlets near schools. However, TTCs circumvent these regulations through product placement, indirect advertising, diverse product portfolios, and corporate social responsibility initiatives. A 1984 R.J. Reynolds internal report explicitly acknowledged that younger smokers represent "the only source of replacement smokers." In 2022 alone, TTCs invested over eight billion US dollars in tobacco marketing in the United States, demonstrating the industry's continued commitment to youth recruitment despite regulatory constraints.

Researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC conducted a nationally representative survey of over 10,000 high school students and found that nicotine pouch usage nearly doubled between 2023 and 2024, rising from 3.0% to 5.4%. Nicotine pouches are small, concealed sachets placed between the gum and lip that contain nicotine and additives. The study, published in JAMA Network Open and funded partly by the National Institutes of Health, analyzed data from the Monitoring the Future survey, which has tracked adolescent substance use since 1975. Results showed increased usage across multiple metrics, including past 30-day and past 12-month consumption, as well as concurrent use with e-cigarettes. Products like Zyn have gained popularity among teens through social media influencers, despite FDA authorization targeting adults 21 and older. Organizations including the American Heart Association and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids have called for regulatory oversight, citing public health concerns. The rapid adolescent adoption of nicotine pouches, coupled with minimal adult usage documented in parallel research, raises significant questions about marketing practices and the necessity for stricter regulation of these emerging nicotine delivery systems.

South America has achieved notable progress in tobacco control, with adult smoking prevalence declining from 21.3% in 2010 to 16.6% in 2022 across the broader Americas, and every South American country establishing smoke-free indoor public place legislation. However, regional approaches to safer nicotine alternatives remain inconsistent and contradictory. While governments have implemented effective measures including tobacco taxation increases and graphic warning labels, several countries maintain outright prohibitions on vaping and heated-tobacco products despite their potential harm-reduction benefits, even as cigarettes remain widely accessible. National tobacco-use rates vary significantly—Chile reported 27.2% prevalence in 2023 while Brazil achieved approximately 9%—demonstrating the need for individualized assessment rather than uniform regional evaluation. Regulatory fragmentation characterizes the market, with Brazil continuing its ANVISA-enforced ban on electronic cigarettes and similar prohibitions in Argentina, Uruguay, and Venezuela, while other nations have adopted supervised regulatory frameworks permitting vapes, heated-tobacco products, and nicotine pouches under age restrictions, health warnings, and product registration requirements. Argentina's establishment of a national registry for tobacco and nicotine products scheduled for May 2026, encompassing e-cigarettes, heated-tobacco devices, and nicotine pouches with explicit focus on traceability and harm reduction, signals a potential shift toward regulated markets over prohibition-driven underground trade, raising fundamental questions about whether tobacco control should focus exclusively on nicotine elimination or enable lower-risk consumption alternatives for adults.

This qualitative research study examined how young people in Scotland perceive and engage with e-cigarette marketing on social media. Researchers conducted twenty focus groups with eighty-two participants aged eleven to sixteen in the Central Belt of Scotland, exploring their smoking and vaping behaviors, social media usage, and exposure to vaping advertisements. Participants were shown illustrative examples of social media content featuring various marketing tactics and messaging strategies. The study revealed that e-cigarette companies employ sophisticated promotional strategies including influencer and celebrity endorsements, appealing youth-oriented flavors, bright visual packaging, and emotional appeals designed specifically to attract young audiences. Social media influencers were identified as key marketing tools that portray e-cigarettes as fashionable and desirable products. While participants recognized e-cigarettes' potential as smoking cessation devices for adults, they emphasized the necessity for stronger restrictions on social media marketing to protect youth. The findings demonstrate that the e-cigarette industry employs marketing tactics similar to those historically used by the tobacco industry. These results underscore the urgent need for governments to develop and implement comprehensive policies restricting e-cigarette advertising and marketing on social media platforms.

Tobacco and e-cigarette companies have systematically targeted youth as their "replacement generation" using tactics that persist across product categories. The 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey reveals over 1.6 million middle and high school students using e-cigarettes, the most prevalent youth tobacco product, with more than 40 percent of high school vapers using them frequently. Nicotine pouches have emerged as the second-most common tobacco product among youth, affecting nearly half a million students, with approximately 30 percent using them frequently and over 20 percent daily. Both products employ identical marketing strategies originally developed for cigarettes: appealing flavors dominate usage, with nearly 90 percent of youth vapers and over 85 percent of nicotine pouch users selecting flavored variants including fruit, candy, mint, and menthol. Industry advertising reaches over 75 percent of students through television and internet platforms, with 73 percent of social media users encountering e-cigarette content. Companies leverage celebrity endorsements and corporate sponsorships to enhance brand appeal. This strategic targeting demonstrates how modern nicotine products replicate historical tobacco playbooks, contributing to escalating youth nicotine addiction rates.

Japan Tobacco International (JTI) is a Geneva-headquartered tobacco multinational and subsidiary of Japan Tobacco Group, which is 33% government-owned by Japan. Founded in 1999 following Japan Tobacco's acquisition of RJ Reynolds' non-US operations, JTI has expanded aggressively through strategic acquisitions. The company acquired Gallaher in 2007, strengthening its European presence, and subsequently entered numerous low- and middle-income countries including Sudan, Egypt, Indonesia, and Bangladesh. In 2012, JTI acquired rolling tobacco company Gryson NV, and in 2016 purchased Natural American Spirit's international business. More recently, the 2024 acquisition of US Vector Group signals JTI's commitment to the combustible tobacco sector, with projections that cheaper cigarettes will comprise over 40% of the US market by 2027. JTI also diversified into e-cigarettes by acquiring UK-based Zandera and US-based Logic. The company maintains over one hundred brands across multiple product categories, including flagship cigarette brands Winston, Mevius, Camel, and LD, alongside rolling tobacco, e-cigarettes, snus, and cigars, positioning itself as a dominant global tobacco player.

Diacetyl, an organic compound naturally occurring in foods and created through fermentation, has become a central concern in vaping safety discussions. This buttery-flavored chemical, commonly used in the food industry for products like microwave popcorn and margarines, initially found its way into e-liquids during the vaping industry's early years when manufacturers adapted food-grade flavorings. However, the industry has substantially shifted its approach, with many modern manufacturers completely eliminating diacetyl from their formulations to prioritize inhalation safety over food-industry standards. The article comprehensively addresses whether diacetyl exists in all vape juices—answering definitively that it does not—and explores why manufacturers have moved away from this ingredient. The analysis covers related diketones like acetoin and acetyl propionyl, the importance of US-made e-liquids, and practical guidance for consumers selecting diacetyl-free products. This matters significantly because informed consumers can make safer purchasing decisions, and industry transparency regarding ingredient composition directly impacts public health perceptions of vaping products.