It’s growing in popularity among adults… and poisoning children: the rise of synthetic nicotine in the U.S.

Synthetic nicotine—chemically identical to tobacco-derived nicotine but crafted in a lab from nicotinic acid (vitamin B3)—is surging in popularity across the U.S., especially in vaping and nicotine pouch products.

Marketed under terms like “safer” or “tobacco-free,” these products appeal to adults seeking smoke-free alternatives. But regulatory safety and accidental poisoning, particularly among children, have emerged as huge concerns.

Unlike traditional nicotine from tobacco, synthetic nicotine is synthesised industrially—often through chemical reactions involving vitamin B3 derivatives.

‘It’s a product with a high concentration of nicotine and it tastes good’

Since spring 2022, the FDA classifies this “non-tobacco nicotine” as a regulated product, meaning it requires approval, cannot be offered to under-21s, and must avoid health claims. However, many products remain in a regulatory grey zone—some companies are reportedly still marketing directly to minors or skipping past FDA rules.

CNN cite a report that researchers from Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio, which analysed over a decade of data, examining more than 134,000 cases of children under the age of 6 who accidentally ingested nicotine through passive smoking. They say that when it came to nicotine pouches, they recorded a surge in incidents, with an increase of more than 760% between 2020 and 2023.

“It’s a product with a high concentration of nicotine 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 to tell a child, ‘This is bad, you should spit it out’… and that’s where they get into trouble.”

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As well as existing inside vapes, the synthetic product comes in small white pouches that users place between their lip and gum. They arrived in U.S. stores in 2014 and while they don’t contain tobacco, they are filled with nicotine, flavourings, and sweeteners.

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