What’s behind the young generation’s obsession with high-strength nicotine? Despite severe warnings, why are the youth willing to put their health at risk just to get a stronger hit? It all started with those 3,500 puff vapes, but now most young consumers have shifted towards ZYN nicotine pouches. However, it’s not just their obsession with a strong hit; there are several factors why high-strength nicotine is the new hot thing.
As we dive deeper into this new rise, the various unregulated and black market pops up. A BBC report published earlier this year further provided an insight into the “alarming rise in strong illicit nicotine pouches.” The media publication reported that Trading Standards teams in Berkshire, Oxfordshire, and Dorset made over 1,500 seizures within the past year.
Nicotine pouches are still sold in a massively unregulated market when it comes to strength or age restrictions and advertising. However, they are still required to be labeled clearly in English with proper safety guidelines, abiding by the General Product Safety Regulations. Despite the regulations, many products with foreign labels are being sold at shops, with some claiming to contain as much as 150mg of nicotine.
Although various tests have revealed that most of these products have lesser nicotine content than claimed, the fact that the labels are misguiding raises serious safety concerns. On the other hand, another question arises: are the manufacturers deliberately using high-strengths as a promotional tool? If so, then they are pushing the young consumers towards more intense hits.
The industry standard set by mainstream brands like Nordic Spirit emphasizes that no pouch should contain over 20mg of nicotine. Although there are no particular regulations about strength, some brands have begun creating “super-strength” pouches with over 30mg of nicotine. While this may just be a marketing tool, young people are definitely buying in.
What ZYN doesn’t want you to know:
A thread on the hidden dangers of the most popular nicotine pouch brand: pic.twitter.com/mqvcigB44B
— C. G. Hill (@hill_cg) September 19, 2024
Now, the ZYNs are leading this new trend of high-strength nicotine products. According to a report by The Guardian, the usage of intense vapes with 20mg/ml jumped from 3.9 percent to 53 percent within three years. Notably, this sharp rise is noticeable between 18 to 24 year olds.
The whole thing started with the rise of disposable vaped, which peaked in 2021. Black markets selling vapes with more than the regulated 2ml of e-liquid became a hot thing, and many users were knowing purchasing those illegal products. A 26-year-old Liverpool native said that the 3,500 vapes were “better value” for money. Another from Warrington echoed, saying that “under-the-counter” vapes just tasted better.
So, it’s not surprising that with the rise of ZYNs, high-strength nicotine pouches would also conquer the market in the same way vapes have been doing. But why is the youth so desperate to get a stronger hit, knowing the side effects of such unregulated products include the likes of nausea, vomiting, lightheadedness, headaches, and increased heart rates that feel like anxiety? Well, for many, that’s what they are looking for: the ‘niccy rush’. For others, there are some more factors.
The vape industry is attracting more young people than the education system, a pediatric pulmonologist stressed at a press conference on Wednesday to underscore the alarming rise in youth vaping.
In a recent press conference, Dr. Corry Avanceña of the Philippine Academy of… pic.twitter.com/r1RdVkhMTi
— GMA Integrated News (@gmanews) March 5, 2025
Caroline Cerny, Deputy Chief Executive at Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), notes that alternative nicotine products often use “fun flavor, names, and animations” as marketing tools, and they are obviously appealing to young people. On the other hand, Ivan Ezquerra Romano, the founder of Drugsand.me, says he blames the lack of awareness and education. “Younger generations heard from older generations that smoking cigarettes is bad and causes cancer, but there is no consistent messaging around the harm that vapes or nicotine pouches could have in the long-term, or even in the short-term.” But there’s also the fact that most people buy those illicit products knowingly.
So it all comes down to one feedback loop – the stronger the hit, the more addiction it creates. Ezquerra Romano says, “If you raise the bar high, then your body is going to want to come back to that high bar next time you are in the situation of vaping or smoking.”
And maybe that’s the biggest reason behind the blooming market of high-strength nicotine products and its favoritism among the young crowds.
