Nicotine Pouch Use Rising Among Teens, Public Health Expert Sounds Alarm

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by MedicalXpress.

Oral nicotine pouches—small, smokeless, nearly invisible, and placed between the lip and gum—are rapidly gaining popularity among teens, sparking new concerns from public health experts.

“Nicotine pouches are really discreet and easy to use. Young people use them without parents and teachers noticing,” said Elise Stevens, Ph.D., assistant professor of population & quantitative health sciences and director of the Center for Tobacco Treatment Research and Training at UMass Chan Medical School. “That’s part of what makes them so dangerous.”

Although oral nicotine pouches have been on the market since 2016, sales have surged dramatically in recent years. In 2016, approximately 100,000 units were sold. By 2020, that number soared to 46 million. The top-selling brands, Zyn, On!, Rogue, and Velo, are owned by big tobacco companies.

Much like e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches have benefited from strategic marketing on social media platforms. Influencers, who often have large followings on social media, are promoting the products, sometimes without disclosing that they are being paid to do so. Early research shows that teens may trust and like the products more as a result of seeing them on social media, even when it is disclosed that the social media posts are paid advertising.

Beyond the rise in popularity, there’s concern over how early use of nicotine pouches may lead to addiction and even riskier behaviors.

“There’s evidence that using one nicotine product makes you more likely to try others or at least view other nicotine and tobacco products as less harmful,” Stevens said. “Even if a teen switches from vaping to pouches, they’re still on a trajectory that could lead to smoking or other substance use.”

Source: MedicalXpress
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-07-nicotine-pouch-teens-health-expert.html