Research

Joseph Magero, member of the Oral Nicotine Commission, wrote about new research published in Kenya in December 2021. A review by a team from the University of Nairobi reported Kenyans are using a variety of oral stimulants and each carries its own varying degree of risk. The found users are more likely to consume the riskier products such as chewing tobacco, areca and khat.

They concluded: we should be making much greater effort to encourage these people towards available tobacco-free products that carry a lesser risk, such as nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) and nicotine pouches.

Globally, almost 400,000 people are diagnosed with oral cancer every year. Smokeless-tobacco use is a major risk factor for oral cancer, but what was less clear is the association between Swedish snus use and oral cancer.

A team at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden recently released an extensive review on snus, based on nine major cohort studies. Using pooled individual data from the Swedish Collaboration on Health Effects of Snus Use, the team used linkage to health registers to follow up on 418,369 male participants for oral cancer incidence.

The findings show that, compared to never-snus use, ever-snus use is not associated with oral cancer. Furthermore, among never smokers, snus use was not associated with oral cancer. The conclusion? There appears to be no link between Swedish snus use and the development of oral cancer in men.

To read more about the benefits of oral nicotine, click here.

A randomized controlled trial protocol has been registered to assess the effectiveness of e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches for smoking cessation in Pakistan. The study aims to enroll 600 participants, with 200 each receiving e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches, or basic care counseling over 48 weeks.

A Cochrane Review protocol has been published to evaluate the benefits and harms of oral nicotine pouches when used to help people transition away from combustible tobacco use (smoking) and other non-combustible tobacco/commercial nicotine products

Independent researchers have noted that nicotine pouches deliver nicotine effectively, with maximum observed concentrations similar to that of lozenges and higher than nicotine gum.

Compared to cigarettes, nicotine pouches produce a slower and lower magnitude of nicotine delivery, which may result in lower abuse potential.

One small study suggested that nicotine pouches might have lower mean ratings of craving compared to nicotine gum, although this finding was not statistically significant.

Researchers have noted that nicotine pouches may be simpler and easier to use than other forms of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), such as nicotine gum, which requires a more complex technique.

A comprehensive review of oral nicotine pouches suggests that ONPs likely produce less harm to individual users than conventional tobacco products (e.g., moist snuff, cigarettes) and can acutely suppress nicotine/tobacco withdrawal symptoms among current cigarette smokers.

Science demonstrates that the way in which nicotine is delivered to the consumer (i.e., the delivery mechanism) plays an important role in determining the level of risk associated with using a particular product.

This presentation by Prof. Mihaela Raescu of Titu Maiorescu University explores the oral health impact of switching from traditional cigarettes to non-combustible tobacco alternatives.