Dataset Information

High-Intensity Sweeteners in Alternative Tobacco Products.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Sweeteners in tobacco products may influence use initiation and reinforcement, with special appeal to adolescents. Recent analytical studies of smokeless tobacco products (snuff, snus, dissolvables) detected flavorants identical to those added to confectionary products such as hard candy and chewing gum. However, these studies did not determine the levels of sweeteners. The objective of the present study was to quantify added sweeteners in smokeless tobacco products, a dissolvable product, electronic cigarette liquids and to compare with sweetener levels in confectionary products.

Methods

Sweetener content of US-sourced smokeless tobacco, electronic cigarette liquid, and confectionary product samples was analyzed by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS).

Results

All smokeless products contained synthetic high intensity sweeteners, with snus and dissolvables exceeding levels in confectionary products (as much as 25-fold). All snus samples contained sucralose and most also aspartame, but no saccharin. In contrast, all moist snuff samples contained saccharin. The dissolvable sample contained sucralose and sorbitol. Ethyl maltol was the most common sweet-associated component in electronic cigarette liquids.

Discussion

Sweetener content was dependent on product category, with saccharin in moist snuff, an older category, sucralose added at high levels to more recently introduced products (snus, dissolvable) and ethyl maltol in electronic cigarette liquid. The very high sweetener concentrations may be necessary for the consumer to tolerate the otherwise aversive flavors of tobacco ingredients. Regulation of sweetener levels in smokeless tobacco products may be an effective measure to modify product attractiveness, initiation and use patterns.

Implications

Dissolvables, snus and electronic cigarettes have been promoted as risk-mitigation products due to their relatively low content of nitrosamines and other tobacco toxicants. This study is the first to quantify high intensity sweeteners in snus and dissolvable products. Snus and dissolvables contain the high intensity sweetener, sucralose, at levels higher than in confectionary products. The high sweetness of alternative tobacco products makes these products attractive to adolescents. Regulation of sweetener content in non-cigarette products is suggested as an efficient means to control product palatability and to reduce initiation in adolescents.

SUBMITTER: Miao S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5055742 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

High-Intensity Sweeteners in Alternative Tobacco Products.

Miao Shida S Beach Evan S ES Sommer Toby J TJ Zimmerman Julie B JB Jordt Sven-Eric SE

Nicotine & tobacco research : official journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco 20160523 11

<h4>Introduction</h4>Sweeteners in tobacco products may influence use initiation and reinforcement, with special appeal to adolescents. Recent analytical studies of smokeless tobacco products (snuff, snus, dissolvables) detected flavorants identical to those added to confectionary products such as hard candy and chewing gum. However, these studies did not determine the levels of sweeteners. The objective of the present study was to quantify added sweeteners in smokeless tobacco products, a disso ...[more]

PMID: 27217475

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Project description:IntroductionWithin tobacco prevention programming, it is useful to identify youth that are at risk for experimenting with various tobacco products and e-cigarettes. The susceptibility to smoking construct is a simple method to identify never-smoking students that are less committed to remaining smoke-free. However, the predictive validity of this construct has not been tested within the Canadian context or for the use of other tobacco products and e-cigarettes.MethodsThis study used a large, longitudinal sample of secondary school students that reported never using tobacco cigarettes and noncurrent use of alternative tobacco products or e-cigarettes at baseline in Ontario, Canada. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of the susceptibility construct for predicting tobacco cigarette, e-cigarette, cigarillo or little cigar, cigar, hookah, and smokeless tobacco use 1 and 2 years after baseline measurement were calculated.ResultsAt baseline, 29.4% of the sample was susceptible to future tobacco product or e-cigarette use. The sensitivity of the construct ranged from 43.2% (smokeless tobacco) to 59.5% (tobacco cigarettes), the specificity ranged from 70.9% (smokeless tobacco) to 75.9% (tobacco cigarettes), and the positive predictive value ranged from 2.6% (smokeless tobacco) to 32.2% (tobacco cigarettes). Similar values were calculated for each measure of the susceptibility construct.ConclusionsA significant number of youth that did not currently use tobacco products or e-cigarettes at baseline reported using tobacco products and e-cigarettes over a 2-year follow-up period. The predictive validity of the susceptibility construct was high and the construct can be used to predict other tobacco product and e-cigarette use among youth.ImplicationsThis study presents the predictive validity of the susceptibility construct for the use of tobacco cigarettes among secondary school students in Ontario, Canada. It also presents a novel use of the susceptibility construct for predicting the use of e-cigarettes, cigarillos or little cigars, cigars, hookah, and smokeless tobacco among secondary school students in Ontario, Canada.

Dataset Information

High-Intensity Sweeteners in Alternative Tobacco Products.

Introduction

Methods

Results

Discussion

Implications

Publications

High-Intensity Sweeteners in Alternative Tobacco Products.

Similar Datasets

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