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Category: Science & Innovation

  • New Study Sounds Alarm on Amount of Nicotine in Vapes

    New Study Sounds Alarm on Amount of Nicotine in Vapes

    A new study conducted by the CDC Foundation and Truth Initiative shows that between February 2020 and June 2024, while the number of e-cigarette units sold each month rose by 34.7%, the total monthly nicotine content sold increased by 249.2%. 

    “Measurements that take into account both e-liquid volume and nicotine concentration paint a more realistic picture of the size and strength of e-cigarettes being sold in stores today,” said Fatma Romeh M. Ali, PhD, health economist and consultant with the CDC Foundation. “Measuring e-cigarette sales in milligrams of nicotine, rather than just counting products, is critical to understanding the public health impact.”

    Published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, the study says the increase is largely driven by disposable devices. The authors reason that because nicotine can be purchased cheaper, it is now more likely to end up with young users, and because there is more nicotine present, those users are likely to become addicted.

    “A disposable e-cigarette today contains significantly more nicotine than it did just a few years ago, posing greater addiction risks—especially for young users,” said Megan Diaz, PhD, research director at Truth Initiative. “These findings raise serious concerns about youth access and affordability because disposables are not only the most popular e-cigarette product among youth, but they’re also the cheapest way to obtain large amounts of nicotine and they come in appealing flavors.”

  • Researchers Find Pouches Shifting Nicotine Delivery Trend with Youth

    Researchers Find Pouches Shifting Nicotine Delivery Trend with Youth

    Researchers at USC’s Keck School of Medicine offered a press release titled “Use of nicotine pouches increases significantly among U.S. teens.” It begins by saying, “The use of nicotine pouches nearly doubled among U.S. high school students between 2023 and 2024,” with Dae-Hee Han, first author of the study, saying, “This growing public health issue needs more attention. Like flavored e-cigarettes when they first emerged, use of this new oral nicotine product is becoming more widespread, particularly among adolescents.”

    Randomly selected responses from one-third of the 10,000 high school students surveyed found that between 2023 and 2024, nicotine pouch use increased from 3.0% to 5.4% all-time, and from 1.3% to 2.6% in the last 30 days. Dual use of nicotine pouches and e-cigarettes also increased, going from 2.7% to 4.7% lifetime and 1.1% to 1.7% in the last 30 days.

    On the other hand, exclusive e-cigarette use declined from 25.7% to 22.0% lifetime, and from 12.3% to 10.1% in the last 30 days. And the use of non-tobacco nicotine products declined from 28.8% to 27.4% lifetime, and from 13.6% to 12.7% in the last 30 days.

    Researchers said the trends reflect a shift in nicotine delivery products rather than a change in the overall prevalence of non-tobacco nicotine use among the students.

  • Continuous Verification Vape ID Files for PMTA

    Continuous Verification Vape ID Files for PMTA

    IKE Tech LLC announced today (May 1) that it has filed a component Premarket Tobacco Product Application (PMTA) and Tobacco Product Master File (TPMF) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its blockchain-based Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) System-on-a-Chip with the smartphone-enabled identity and age-verification IKE Mobile Application.

    “This marks the first-ever complete PMTA submission for a standalone, scalable age-gating component that provides real-time, continuous age verification at the point-of-use for electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS),” the company said in a press release. “The IKE System is designed for universal integration across all ENDS devices, utilizing unique blockchain-based tokenization technology to further ensure user privacy and security.”

    IKE Tech said in a multi-center Human Factors Validation Study submitted as part of the PMTA, the system proved to be 100% effective in preventing device activation for anyone under the age of 21. The company has formally requested an expedited review of its application, emphasizing the system’s potential to enhance public health.

    “This is a major milestone for IKE Tech and the ENDS category,” said John Patterson, president of IKE Tech. “We’re not just building technology. We’re paving a new regulatory framework that gives the FDA and manufacturers powerful tools to safeguard public health and ensure adult-only access to vaping products. With proven, scalable age-gating technology built into ENDS devices, the sector now has a real opportunity to eliminate underage vaping for good.”

    Unlike existing solutions that allow permanent access after a single verification, IKE’s system requires continuous verification to maintain device access. The Human Factors Validation study showed 91% of users (aged 18-67) rated the app as “Extremely Easy” or “Very Easy” to use, with a user error rate of less than 0.8%. 

    Read more about IKE Tech here.

  • Study: Chips and Biometrics Protect ENDS Devices from Underage Use

    Study: Chips and Biometrics Protect ENDS Devices from Underage Use

    IKE Tech LLC announced the results from a multi-center Human Factors Validation Study evaluating its Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) System, where 100% of users completed age verification, and no underage users were able to activate a device. According to the company, IKE System is the first interoperable biometric blockchain-based platform designed to control access to electronic nicotine delivery systems.

    IKE Tech is a joint venture between Ispire Technology Inc., Berify, and Chemular.

    The study assessed usability, safety, and effectiveness in preventing underage access to ENDS, using BLE-enabled chips and biometric authentication to control device access in real-time.

    “Our findings prove that digital access control is not only achievable but scalable—and essential to the future of ENDS regulation” said John Patterson, President of IKE Tech. “We’re not just building technology. We’re building a new regulatory framework, one that gives the FDA and manufacturers powerful tools to safeguard public health and ensure adult-only access. This is bigger than just a chip—it’s a paradigm shift.”

    Conducted with more than 100 participants, the study simulated real-world use of the IKE system. Participants downloaded the app, verified their age, paired with a test device, and interacted with BLE-based access controls. Devices could only be reactivated with biometric authentication. One hundred percent of devices deactivated after a period of inactivity or loss of Bluetooth signal, and 91% rated the app “extremely easy” or “very easy” to use.

  • Study: Smoking, Vaping, Marijuana All Affect Airways Differently

    Study: Smoking, Vaping, Marijuana All Affect Airways Differently

    According to new research by UC Davis, cigarette smoke has a greater impact on airway health than marijuana smoke or vaping. Medical Xpress said researchers found that tobacco smoke, in particular, increased inflammation and oxidative stress. Their paper was published in Respiratory Research.

    “We didn’t measure the chemicals that come out of cigarettes or marijuana, we measured the responses of the airway epithelial cells, as well as some systemic responses,” said pulmonologist Nicholas Kenyon, director of the UC Davis Asthma Network and co-senior author on the study. “The metabolites tell us quite a bit about oxidative stress and inflammation.”

    The study recruited 254 participants, with 132 using a tobacco or marijuana product, sometimes both. The researchers collected exhaled breath condensate, which is the fog people see when they breathe on a mirror.

    “From there, the team used mass spectrometry to analyze the oxylipin content in the collected condensate,” wrote Medical Xpress. “Oxylipins are lipid-based signaling molecules often associated with inflammation and oxidative stress. The researchers found these metabolites were significantly upregulated in tobacco smokers, meaning they increased in activity. The oxylipin responses were less dramatic in participants who vaped tobacco products. For marijuana smokers, the oxylipin profiles were much closer (but not identical) to non-users.”

    These findings diverge from earlier cell culture studies, which showed that both tobacco and marijuana smoke generate significant oxidative stress and inflammation. The current study is the first of its kind with humans.

    “Cigarettes upregulate these inflammatory fatty acids, but we didn’t see that nearly as much with marijuana and marijuana products,” said Kenyon. “When we look at the signatures from the marijuana smokers, they look closer to non-users and non-smokers than the tobacco smokers, and that was a surprise to us.”

  • CORESTA Accepting Abstracts for PSPT Conference

    CORESTA Accepting Abstracts for PSPT Conference

    The Cooperation Centre for Scientific Research Relative to Tobacco (CORESTA) launched its website to register for its 2025 Product Science and Product Technology (PSPT) Conference being held in Annecy, France, October 19–23.

    CORESTA said this conference will help its mission “to promote and facilitate international cooperation and best practices relative to tobacco and its derived products.”

    Abstracts related to scientific research for tobacco and nicotine products will be accepted until May 23. More information and abstract submissions can be found here.

  • Bloom Earns Quality Certification

    Bloom Earns Quality Certification

    Bloom, a national cannabis vape brand, announced it has earned Environmental & Consumer Compliance Organization (ECCO) Certification in California — raising the bar for product testing, accountability, and transparency within the cannabis industry. Regulatory enforcement and lab testing standards vary widely across states in the cannabis market, often resulting in inconsistent, conflicting product results.

    “By achieving ECCO Certification, Bloom reaffirms our commitment to delivering high-quality products for our customers,” said Thomas Brinly, VP of Operations and Supply Chain at Bloom. “This certification ensures that consumers have transparent, verified information about what’s in their vapes—tested beyond standard regulatory requirements. We encourage other brands to join us in raising the bar for product integrity and consistency across the cannabis industry.”

    ECCO is an independent, nonprofit organization committed to consumer and environmental safety. Products certified by ECCO are rigorously screened for over 100 potential contaminants beyond what the California DCC requires. This is all done through ongoing third-party lab testing. Certification is only awarded to brands that pass stringent benchmarks for safety, integrity, and transparency. ECCO is currently offered in the state of California.

  • ITGA Announces Annual Meeting

    ITGA Announces Annual Meeting

    Tobacco-producing countries from North, Central, and South America have been invited to participate in the International Tobacco Growers’ Association (ITGA) “Americas Regional Meeting on April 24 in Jujuy, Argentina

    The ITGA is convening stakeholders from the tobacco sector across the Americas to address key issues currently impacting the industry. This year’s discussions will place particular emphasis on the increasing regulatory pressure from the World Health Organization (WHO), driven by its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which will host its Eleventh Conference of the Parties (COP11) this coming November.

    Brazil—currently the world’s largest exporter of tobacco and the second-largest producer after China—has taken one of the strongest opposing stances in the context of these WHO negotiations. The Brazilian Tobacco Growers’ Association (Afubra) will be in attendance to advocate for the socio-economic importance of tobacco in the regions where it is cultivated and to showcase initiatives that promote family farming both within and beyond the tobacco sector.

    “We must support our Brazilian brothers in defending the sector because it affects us all and must be seen as a joint struggle,” said José Aranda, president of the ITGA.

  • CORESTA Announces Next Webinar

    The Cooperation Centre for Scientific Research Relative to Tobacco (CORESTA) announced its latest agro-phyto webinar, titled “Tobacco Genetic Resources: The Foundation for a Global Industry.” The webinar will be held May 13 at 1 p.m. CET.

    In addition to the tobacco genetic resources, the other major topic will be assessing flue-cured tobacco yield trends.

    “Tobacco genetic resources are the single most important component of the global tobacco industry, as genetics determine tobacco raw material performance, usability, and placement in manufactured products,” CORESTA said. “North Carolina State University maintains one of the most significant tobacco germplasm collections in the world.

    “Insight relative to this collection will be shared by Dr. Ramsey Lewis. In addition, Dr. Matthew Vann will present historical flue-cured tobacco variety performance data, which highlights a tangible, positive outcome that has helped to sustain leaf production since the 1950s.”

  • Two New Webinars for Tobacco Researchers

    Two New Webinars for Tobacco Researchers

    CORESTA announced two new webinars for researchers in the tobacco industry.

    “Techniques for Successful Applied Tobacco Field Research” will be held April 15 at 1 p.m. CET. In its description, CORESTA said, “Tobacco research spans multiple disciplines, each requiring specialized knowledge and protocols. Effective field research in tobacco production shares common principles and practices that ensure reliable and accurate results. This webinar will provide a comprehensive overview of the essential research methodologies for conducting field-based studies in tobacco production.”

    The second webinar is “Tobacco Genetic Resources: The Foundation for a Global Tobacco Industry.” It is described as, “Tobacco genetic resources are the single most important component of the global tobacco industry. This webinar will share insight relative to the North Carolina State University germplasm collection and will present historical flue-cured tobacco variety performance data to highlight the tangible, positive outcome that has helped to sustain leaf production since the 1950s.”