WASHINGTON – Federal health officials on Thursday endorsed the public health benefits of nicotine pouches and cleared Philip Morris International's Zyn to help adult smokers cut back on cigarettes or quit smoking.
The Food and Drug Administration has approved 10 Zyn flavors, including coffee, mint, and menthol.
This is the first time regulators have approved the sale of nicotine pouches, the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. tobacco market.
The pouches have been on the market for more than a decade after the FDA reviewed company data intended to show the product works as an alternative to cigarettes and other traditional tobacco products.
This decision does not mean Zyn is safe, just that it is less harmful than older alternatives.
To remain on the market, companies typically have to show that their products can reduce illness in adult tobacco users without attracting teenagers.
FDA officials said Thursday that Zyn has fewer harmful ingredients than cigarettes and other types of chewing tobacco, including snuff, which has been linked to cancer and other life-threatening diseases.
The company's data also shows that “a significant portion of adults” who previously smoked have switched to Zyn completely, the regulator said. Pouches are sold in two different strengths.
Matthew Farrelly of the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products said, “The data show that these nicotine pouch products provide benefits to adults who use cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products and meet the criteria for doing so.” Ta.
The FDA has previously granted similar approvals to e-cigarettes, tobacco heating devices, and several brands of snus, a type of pasteurized tobacco popular in Scandinavian countries.
Unlike snus, Zyn and other nicotine pouches do not contain tobacco, only nicotine and flavoring.
As smoking levels in the United States and around the world continue to decline, tobacco companies have been working for decades to develop alternative products to replace declining cigarette sales.
E-cigarettes became popular more than a decade ago but faced a backlash, sparking a multi-year surge in underage vaping.
In recent months, anti-smoking groups have pointed to videos of young people popping Zyn and other pouches that have racked up millions of views on social media platforms, and nicotine-filled pouches could follow a similar path. He warned me.
But the FDA pointed to government survey data showing less than 2% of U.S. high school and middle school students used nicotine pouches last year.
Proponents of the pouches point out that Zyn works similarly to nicotine gum, lozenges and other older smoking cessation products, releasing low levels of nicotine that is absorbed into the gum and suppresses cravings.
The debate over Zyn spilled over into politics last year, with Democrats and Republicans once again clashing in the nation's culture wars.
In late January, New York Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer called on regulators to investigate Zyn because of its appeal to teenagers.
Several House Republicans then warned voters that “Big Brother” intended to “ban nicotine.”
Tucker Carlson and other conservative commentators are among the public figures supporting Zyn.
Philip Morris said its Swedish Match division does not employ online influencers or endorsers to promote Zyn, which it sells in the United States. This competes with similar products from other tobacco competitors, such as Altria's On pouches.
