Tag: research

  • Freebase Nicotine Safer than Salts: Study

    Freebase Nicotine Safer than Salts: Study

    A new University of Louisville study shows the nicotine in certain types of electronic cigarettes can increase the risk for an irregular heartbeat, according to a press release.

    Tests in mice showed that nicotine salts used in pod-based e-cigarettes led to heart arrhythmias and could trigger a fight-or-flight response in higher doses.

    “This suggests the nicotine is harmful to the heart and counters popular claims that the nicotine itself is harmless,” Alex Carll, an assistant professor in UofL’s Department of Physiology who led the study, said in a news release Thursday. “Our findings provide new evidence that nicotine type and concentration modify the adverse cardiovascular effects of e-cigarette aerosols, which may have important regulatory implications.”

    Researchers state that regulating nicotine salts could help mitigate the health risks of vaping.

    The research also suggests choosing e-cigarettes with freebase nicotine instead of nicotine salts, or using e-cigarettes with a lower nicotine content could reduce the risk of harm.

  • New Guidance on Perception/Intention Studies

    New Guidance on Perception/Intention Studies

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Today issued a final guidance on guidance perception and intention studies.

    The guidance, “Tobacco Products: Principles for Designing and Conducting Tobacco Product Perception and Intention Studies,” is intended to help applicants design and conduct tobacco product perception and intention (TPPI) studies that may be submitted as part of a modified risk tobacco product (MRTP) application, a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA), or a substantial equivalence report (SE Report).

    TPPI studies can be used to assess, among other things, individuals’ perceptions of tobacco products, understanding of tobacco product information (e.g., labeling, modified risk information), and intentions to use tobacco products, according to the FDA.

    These studies provide critical information during the review of product applications and this guidance provides recommendations on how to perform these studies.

    The final guidance addresses several scientific issues for applicants to consider when designing and conducting TPPI studies to support tobacco product applications:

    • Developing study aims and hypotheses
    • Designing quantitative and qualitative studies
    • Selecting and adapting measures of study constructs
    • Determining study outcomes
    • Selecting and justifying study samples
    • Analyzing study results

    The guidance document is intended to provide clarity to applicants regarding existing requirements under the law, according to FDA.

    “FDA guidance documents, including this guidance, should be viewed as recommendations for consideration, unless specific regulatory or statutory requirements are cited,” the release states.

  • Report: Nicotine Tax Will Boost Smoking, Hurt Economy

    Report: Nicotine Tax Will Boost Smoking, Hurt Economy

    A new report finds that combustible cigarettes will become less expensive than vaping products and nearly 43,000 jobs would be lost if the proposed nicotine tax contained in the Build Back Better bill (HR 5376) were to become law. The Vapor Technology Association (VTA) funded study, The Negative Economic Impacts of the New Nicotine Tax Imposed Only on Vapor Products In the Reconciliation Bill, conducted by economist John Dunham & Associates, is being billed as a comprehensive analysis of the negative effects that the proposed tax will have on smokers, the industry and the economy.

    “Our analysis finds that the bill would not create anything close to parity with cigarette taxes but, rather, would tax vapor products at a much higher rate – up to nine times higher – than the tax on a pack of cigarettes,” the report states. “The proposed nicotine tax in the Reconciliation Bill would lead to a net price increase on vapor products at retail of about 53 percent (21.2 percent for a standard two-pack of closed-system pod products and 73.5 percent for a standard 60 milliliter bottle of open system e-liquid), while the price of cigarettes and other tobacco products would remain unchanged as they would not be subject to any additional federal tax.”

    The study also concludes that the proposed nicotine tax would lead to a reduction of nearly 42,800 full-time equivalent jobs and the loss of $2.2 billion in wages and benefits, negatively impact the size of the overall economy which would fall by about $7 billion and would result in states and their localities losing $620 million in taxes while the federal government attempts to generate revenues.

    “A pack of cigarettes contains approximately 204 milligrams of nicotine (10.2 mg/cigarette x 20 cigarettes per pack).  Applying the proposed nicotine tax of 2.78-cents per milligram to cigarettes, means that the tax on a pack of cigarettes should be $5.41, not $1.01,” the study states. “Viewed another way, the federal tax on cigarettes, if applied to their nicotine content, would only amount to less than half a penny per milligram, not the 2.78-cents Congress seeks to impose on e-cigarettes ($1.01 per pack / 204 mg of nicotine per pack).”

    As defined in the bill, the proposed tax would be equal to about $2.22 on the standard closed system nicotine vapor product (such as a two pack of JUUL pods), and a $10.01 on the standard average 60 milliliter bottle of nicotine containing e-liquid used in an open system vapor device,” according to the study.

    If passed, the proposed tax would also lead to a loss of about 31.9 percent of vapor product sales or 3.7 million milliliters of e-liquid consumed. Of this loss, 61.2 percent would be the result of consumers switching to other tobacco products, including combustible cigarettes. An additional 18.5 percent of these lost sales would move to the black market, according to the study.

    “Modeling suggests that a large portion of consumers would react by purchasing unregulated products over the black market or make their own e-liquids,” according to the study. “These figures (which reflect a price increase resulting from the tax of 53 percent) are conservative and are not out of line with other studies examining the substitution of vapor products and combustible cigarettes when taxes are imposed.”

  • Sticky story: 3rd-hand smoke gives guests gooey fingers

    Anyone who has ever walked into a “non-smoking” hotel room and caught the distinct odor of cigarette smoke will not be surprised by the findings of a new study: When a hotel allows smoking in any of its rooms, the smoke gets into all of its rooms, the study suggests, according to a story in USA Today.

    Nicotine residues and other chemical traces “don’t stay in the smoking rooms,” says Georg Matt, a psychologist from San Diego State University who led the study, published Monday in the journal Tobacco Control. “They end up in the hallways and in other rooms, including non-smoking rooms.”

    The study found smoke residue on surfaces and in the air of both smoking and non-smoking rooms in 30 California hotels where smoking was allowed. Levels were highest in the smoking rooms, but levels in non-smoking rooms were much higher than those found at 10 smoke-free hotels.

    Volunteers who stayed overnight in the smoking hotels also ended up with sticky nicotine residues on their fingers, whether they stayed in smoking rooms or not. Urine tests found additional evidence of nicotine exposure in those who stayed in smoking rooms, but not those who stayed in the non-smoking rooms.

  • UK campaigners condemn ‘sexist’ study on plain packaging

    Campaigners in the U.K. opposed to plain packaging of tobacco have described as “sexist” a study that says young female smokers get less satisfaction and less enjoyment from smoking cigarettes that come in plain, standardized packs.

    Hands Off Our Packs campaigner Angela Harbutt, a smoker, said, “The idea that plain packaging will have a greater impact on young women suggests that women are more easily influenced than men. This is not only an outdated view of women, it’s also incredibly sexist.

    “Women can think for themselves and if they enjoy smoking, as many do, the packaging will make no difference. It may influence which brand they buy, but not their habit.”

    According to researchers at Stirling University, women in the study said they were more embarrassed about smoking from plain packs and felt more negative about smoking from the plain packs, even though they were smoking their regular cigarettes.

    The same women allegedly reported smoking fewer cigarettes, stubbing out cigarettes early, smoking less around others and thinking more about quitting when using the plain packs.

    Harbutt added, “This is perfectly normal behavior but it doesn’t last.”

  • Less drinking, smoking causes Aussies more problems

    A major research project has found that Australians have cut down on smoking and drinking, but they’ve gained weight and become more anxious.

    A survey by Roy Morgan Research of 50,000 Australians every year, over five years, has found 1.1 million fewer glasses of alcoholic drinks are being consumed a week and 134,000 fewer people smoke compared with 2007, according to a story posted on the Sky News website.

    But CEO Michele Levine says the bad news is that 736,000 more adults are obese and the number of people with anxiety has increased by 1.3 million.

    Roy Morgan Research collaborated with Alere healthcare company to establish the Alere Wellness Index.

    The results are based on 1,800 questions put to 50,000 people a year, every year, for the past five years.

  • TSRC announces conference dates

    The 67th Tobacco Science Research Conference (TSRC) will take place at the Williamsburg Lodge and Conference Center in Williamsburg, Virginia, USA, Sept. 15-18, 2013. Hosted by Borgwaldt, the symposium’s theme will be Constituent lists: reshaping tobacco science.

    A panel of experts will share its views on this diverse topic during the opening day. The next two days are reserved for the scientific papers, poster presentations and knowledge workshops.

    Those wishing to present papers or posters during the conference are invited to submit their abstracts electronically before May 27, 2013.

    Nominations for the TSRC Lifetime Achievement Award will be accepted until May 27, 2013. This award honors a distinguished scientist for a lifetime of outstanding contributions to tobacco science research or development.

    For more information about the conference, sponsorship opportunities and abstract submissions, visit www.tsrcinfo.com.