Snus
It is consumed by placing a pouch of powdered tobacco leaves under the lip for nicotine to be absorbed through the oral mucosa.
The shift in labeling aims to provide accurate information while still cautioning consumers about potential health concerns.
[8][9] The main causes for mortality from smoking including cardiovascular disease from the effects of smoke on vascular coagulation and blood vessel walls are not caused primarily by nicotine and hence not to be considered equal to the moderate cardiovascular health risks from nicotine pouches.
Some European countries, such as the United Kingdom,[15] Ireland[16] and Estonia,[17] allow the sale of non-tobacco-based snus.
In earlier times, tobacco for making snus was laid out for drying in Scania and Mälardalen, Sweden.
[18] Unlike dipping tobacco and chew, most snus today does not undergo the fermentation process, but is instead steam-pasteurized.
Pasteurization inhibits the growth of bacteria that facilitate the formation of tobacco-specific nitrosamines, while preserving the desired texture and mouthfeel of the snus.
[19] A voluntary quality standard for snus products has been introduced (Gothiatek) that sets maximum levels for certain controversial constituents including nitrosamines, heavy metals, and polyaromatic hydrocarbons.
Snus is sold in containers of various sizes, originally made of porcelain, wood, silver, or gold.
Some tobacco-based snus products are shipped very dry, so they have extended shelf life without needing any refrigeration.
[41] This popularity has led to controversy among government regulators who view the product's appeal to youth as concerning.
[44] Within days of the ban, Epok was re-introduced to the Norwegian market, with a minute amount of bleached tobacco added, to qualify as snus, an already approved form of nicotine product.
In February 2024, British Columbia issued a ministerial order that prohibited nicotine pouches from being sold outside of pharmacies.
[61] In the 2024 Canadian federal budget, a provision was enacted which gives the Minister of Health power to restrict the sale, manufacture, importation, or promotion of health products, if they have a risk of harm associated with off-label use; Holland stated that the provision was intended primarily to target nicotine pouches.
[8][9] A meta-analysis from 2015 by members of Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai, India, argues that nicotine may be carcinogenic through indirect effects on a range of organ systems in the body.
Specifically, they claim that nicotine "affects the cell proliferation, oxidative stress, apoptosis, DNA mutation by various mechanisms, which leads to cancer.
Advocacy groups opposed to the introduction of nicotine pouches in Kenya have protested that they may raise the risk of cancer, heart disease, and reproductive or developmental harms.
[72] The Kenya Tobacco Control Alliance alleged that given the higher levels of some toxic chemicals, and what the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said was a lack of medical data showing the pouches are safer than cigarettes (as claimed by manufacturer British American Tobacco), the government should not license the product.
[73] Nicot meticulously dried and ground the tobacco leaves into a fine powder, which could be inhaled as snuff.
He presented this powder to Catherine de’ Medici (1519–1589), the Queen of France, in an effort to alleviate her migraines.
Due to manual laborers typically working outside where frequent use of a dry, finely ground nasal snuff is not convenient, they opted to crush their tobaccos into a paste-like consistency and allowed it to ferment in jars for several weeks.
The final product was then portioned and placed under the lip for extended periods of time, eventually gaining popularity as snus.
Its founder, Jakob Fredrik Ljunglöf, introduced pasteurization into snus making, reducing production time by several weeks and preventing microbial contamination.
[citation needed] In 1914, the Swedish parliament made the decision to nationalize the entire tobacco industry.
As a result, the number of available tobacco products decreased significantly from approximately four hundred local brands to just seventeen, although these were now distributed nationwide.
