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Nicotine Pouch Use in Teens Linked to Lower Risk for Continued Vaping

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, May 19, 2025 -- Nicotine pouch use in adolescence is associated with a lower likelihood of continued vaping, according to a study published online May 19 in Pediatrics.

Alyssa F. Harlow, Ph.D., M.P.H., from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, and colleagues used data from six semiannual waves of a prospective cohort of Southern California adolescents from 2021 to 2024 to examine whether oral nicotine product (ONP) use is associated with vaping behaviors. Data were included for participants who used electronic cigarettes in the past six months at waves 1 to 5 (703 individuals; mean age, 16 years). Associations between ONP use at waves 1 to 5 and subsequent vaping persistence and frequency six months later at waves 2 to 6 were examined.

There were 277 observations of any past six-month ONP use across a total of 1,173 observations (23.7 percent). The researchers found that the likelihood of subsequent vaping persistence was lower in association with past six-month use (versus nonuse) of any ONP, nicotine pouches, and other ONPs (risk ratios, 0.75, 0.43, and 0.72, respectively). There was also an inverse association seen for use of nicotine pouches with past 30-day vaping frequency at follow-up (incidence rate ratio, 0.43). Only inverse associations of nicotine pouch use with vaping persistence remained in a secondary analysis examining ONP use in the past 30 days and restricted to youth reporting past 30-day e-cigarette use at exposure waves.

"We provide initial evidence that youth ONP use may not contribute to increased vaping," the authors write. "Future studies should continue to monitor the impact of ONP use on youth tobacco use behaviors, including their potential to appeal to tobacco-naïve youth and whether they may serve as a substitute (or complement) to concurrent tobacco use behaviors."

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Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

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Posted May 2025

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