Nicotine pouches

• Nicotine pouches are small pouches that are placed between the lip and gum, where they slowly release nicotine that is absorbed into the bloodstream.
• Usage is currently low in Great Britain but has increased over recent years.
• Using pouches is likely to be less harmful than smoking tobacco, but more research is needed into their use as a quit aid.
• Nicotine pouches are not currently well regulated in the UK and are not covered by age of sale restrictions.

• What are nicotine pouches and how do they work?
• How many people in Britain use nicotine pouches?
• What about use among children?
• Can nicotine pouches help people quit smoking?
• What are the health effects of nicotine pouches?
• How are nicotine pouches regulated?

Nicotine pouches are small pouches of nicotine which are placed in the mouth, between the lip and the gum, and release nicotine into the bloodstream. They are usually sold in a small container consisting of approximately 20 pouches and come in a wide variety of different flavours.

Nicotine pouches do not contain tobacco. However, many of the current nicotine pouch brands in the UK are owned by tobacco companies. Concerns have been raised about how they are marketed to appeal to children and people who don’t smoke.

Sometimes nicotine pouches are incorrectly referred to as ‘snus’. Snus is a Swedish tobacco product consisting of a pouch filled with tobacco, also placed in the mouth, which has a long history of use in Scandinavia. Snus has been banned across the EU and UK since 1992. For more information see the Tobacco Tactics page on snus.

Currently around 1.1% of adults use nicotine pouches. 6.0% have tried them.

Among adults, particularly younger ones, use of nicotine pouches is on the rise. Between 2023 and 2025, usage among 18 to 34-year-olds increased from 1.2% to 2.6%, reporting currently using them—compared to just 0.2% among adults over 55. Young men (aged under 40) are nearly three times more likely to use nicotine pouches than women, with 3.5% of men reporting use compared to 1.2% of women.

Awareness of these products is increasing. In 2025, 56% of adults were aware of them, compared to 45% in 2023.

These findings are from the annual ASH/YouGov survey of smoking and vaping behaviour in Great Britain.

Nearly 4% (3.8%) of 11-17 year olds say they’ve tried nicotine pouches, which amounts to approximately 210,000 children. Awareness of nicotine pouches has increased among children 11-17, rising from 38% in 2024 to 43% in 2025.

Nicotine pouches are not currently recommended by NICE for smoking cessation. However, current evidence suggests that oral nicotine pouches are probably less harmful than traditional tobacco products like cigarettes or chewing tobacco. They may also help reduce nicotine cravings in people who smoke. This means nicotine pouches might be a safer alternative for smokers who switch completely from smoking to pouches. However, more high-quality, independent research is needed, especially long-term studies as most existing studies have been funded by the tobacco industry.

As nicotine pouches are fairly new products, research is fairly limited and caution needs to be taken when interpreting the results as much of the existing research is funded by industry, including the tobacco industry. A recent scoping review of existing evidence found nicotine pouches have fewer harmful chemicals and are likely to be less toxic than cigarettes, but more independent studies are needed.

There is little research on how nicotine pouches affect oral health, but experts can make educated guesses based on what's known about similar nicotine products like gum and lozenges. While nicotine itself isn’t linked to serious oral diseases like cancer, long-term use of nicotine pouches could cause issues like mouth soreness, ulcers, or gum recession and more research is needed to fully understand these risks.

Anecdotally, effects reported of nicotine pouches include nausea, vomiting, headaches, and dizziness, especially when used by people not used to nicotine.

In the UK, these products are not currently captured by regulation of either tobacco or vapes and as such are only regulated under general consumer product safety regulations. This means that it is currently legal to sell them to children, there are no restrictions on nicotine content, and they can be widely marketed.

The incoming Tobacco and Vapes Bill will allow government to regulate all aspects of these products including banning marketing, restricting nicotine content and introducing a minimum age of sale of 18.

• Tobacco Tactics webpage on nicotine pouches.