California has launched a new campaign aimed at warning young adults about a new generation of nicotine products.
The campaign, called “Not Your Lab Rat,” targets people ages 18 to 24 and is funded by the state’s settlement with Juul Labs, a maker of vaping devices. It warns that young adults may be used as “test subjects” for high-dose vapes and nicotine pouches.
John P. Pierce, a professor at the University of California San Diego, said today’s products deliver nicotine differently than traditional cigarettes.
“The old cigarette is gone for young people these days, for the most part,” Pierce said. “It had about 10 to 12 milligrams of nicotine, but you only got about 2 milligrams by smoking it.”
When high-nicotine vaping products became popular in 2017, Juul Labs quickly emerged as a dominant brand.
“Juul had about 6 milligrams of nicotine,” Pierce said. “And you'd vape that, and you'd get 30–40% of that. It hit straight to the lungs, and so it was much more addictive.”
Pierce said health concerns are growing, especially for a generation that may not remember earlier risks tied to vaping.
“The vaping has effects on the respiratory system, and also the cardiovascular system,” he said. “People have forgotten that EVALI was killing people. EVALI was e-cigarette and vaping lung injury.”
He added that it may take years to fully understand the long-term impact.
“We'd have to wait 10 to 15 years to start seeing how big a problem it's going to be,” Pierce said. “But we expect it's going to be a big problem.”
Adrian Kwiatkowski with San Diegans vs Big Tobacco said efforts to regulate tobacco products often lead to new alternatives.
“It's like the game of whack-a-mole,” Kwiatkowski said. “The minute you regulate one product, they pop up with a brand new one.”
He said the industry’s strategy has remained consistent.
“Basically hook them young,” he said. “Hook them, you know, while they're impressionable.”
