As nicotine pouches’ popularity soars, they’re also responsible for more poisonings in young kids, study finds – CTV
July 14, 2025
Nicotine pouches are a fast-growing source of nicotine poisoning in young children, according to a new study.
Researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio analyzed more than a decade’s worth of data, examining over 134,000 cases of children under 6 who accidentally ingested nicotine through products like vapes, gums, and lozenges. Most types of exposures fell after 2016. But one delivery method — nicotine pouches — shot up, rising more than 760% between 2020 and 2023.
“It’s a high-concentration nicotine product, and it tastes good,” said Dr. Natalie Rine, director of the Central Ohio Poison Center at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and co-author of the study, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics. “There’s nothing telling the kid, ‘this is bad, you should spit it out’ … and that’s where you get into trouble.”
The miniature white packets that users tuck between their lip and gum hit US shelves in 2014. They don’t contain tobacco but are instead filled with nicotine, either synthetically or naturally derived, along with flavorings and sweeteners.
