Jabba Sairam V, Silinski Peter, Yang Alicia Y, Ouyang Wenyi, Jordt Sven E
Department of Anesthesiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA.
Yale Center for the Study of Tobacco Products (YCSTP), Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT.
Nicotine Tob Res. 2024 Dec 5. doi: 10.1093/ntr/ntae293.
Artificial sweeteners, sucralose and acesulfame-k, are listed as ingredients of oral nicotine pouches (ONPs), a product category with rapidly growing market share. The exact quantities of these sweeteners in ONPs remain unknown. Artificial sweeteners in ONPs may reduce aversion, facilitate initiation and encourage consumption behavior.
Sucralose and acesulfame-k contents in major US-marketed ONP brands (Zyn, on!, Velo) were determined by Liquid-Chromatography-Mass-Spectrometry. Sweetener effects on aversion and consumption of ONP's were modeled in single- and two-bottle drinking tests, offering mice ONP extracts calibrated to contain nicotine levels similar to saliva of people who use smokeless tobacco. To examine the contribution of sweet taste perception, consumption behavior was compared between wild-type and sweet-taste receptor deficient mice (Tas1r2-/-).
Acesulfame-K was detected in on!, Zyn and Velo ONPs (0.3 to 0.9mg/pouch), including products marketed as "Unflavored" or "Flavor ban approved". In Velo ONPs, sweetened with sucralose (0.6 to1.2mg/pouch), higher nicotine strength products contained higher sucralose levels. Tas1r2-/- mice consumed less ONP extracts than wild-type mice in both sexes. ONP extracts with both higher nicotine and sweetener strengths were tolerated by wild-type mice, but produced stronger aversion in Tas1r2-/- mice.
ONPs contain significant amounts of artificial sweeteners acesulfame-k and sucralose, with some brands adding more sweetener to higher nicotine strength ONPs. In mice, artificial sweeteners, at levels present in ONPs, increase nicotine consumption. Increasing sweetener contents facilitate consumption of higher nicotine strength ONPs. Sweetness imparted by sweetener addition to ONPs likely reduces aversive sensory effects of nicotine and other ONP constituents.
Artificial sweeteners such as acesulfame-K or sucralose reduce aversion and likely facilitate consumption of ONPs. The marketing of some artificially sweetened ONPs as "Unflavored" or "Flavor ban-approved" suggests that the tobacco industry rejects sweet taste as a determinant for the presence of a characterizing flavor. Sweetness as imparted by artificial sweeteners in tobacco products needs to be addressed by regulators as a component of a characterizing flavor, with the aim to reduce product appeal and initiation by never users, and especially youth attracted to sweet flavors.
人工甜味剂三氯蔗糖和安赛蜜-K被列为口腔尼古丁袋（ONP）的成分，ONP是一个市场份额迅速增长的产品类别。这些甜味剂在ONP中的具体含量尚不清楚。ONP中的人工甜味剂可能会减少厌恶感，促进开始使用并鼓励消费行为。
通过液相色谱-质谱法测定美国主要市场上ONP品牌（Zyn、on!、Velo）中的三氯蔗糖和安赛蜜-K含量。在单瓶和双瓶饮水试验中模拟甜味剂对ONP厌恶感和消费的影响，为小鼠提供校准后含有与使用无烟烟草者唾液中尼古丁水平相似的ONP提取物。为了研究甜味感知的作用，比较了野生型和甜味受体缺陷小鼠（Tas1r2-/-）的消费行为。
在on!、Zyn和Velo ONP中检测到安赛蜜-K（约0.3至0.9毫克/袋），包括标为“无味”或“批准无调味”的产品。在以三氯蔗糖增甜的Velo ONP中（约0.6至1.2毫克/袋），尼古丁强度较高的产品三氯蔗糖含量也较高。Tas1r2-/-小鼠在两性中消耗的ONP提取物均少于野生型小鼠。尼古丁和甜味剂强度都较高的ONP提取物野生型小鼠可以耐受，但在Tas1r2-/-小鼠中会产生更强的厌恶感。
ONP含有大量人工甜味剂安赛蜜-K和三氯蔗糖，一些品牌在尼古丁强度较高的ONP中添加了更多甜味剂。在小鼠中，ONP中存在的人工甜味剂水平会增加尼古丁的消耗量。增加甜味剂含量有助于消耗尼古丁强度较高的ONP。向ONP中添加甜味剂所带来的甜味可能会降低尼古丁和其他ONP成分的厌恶感官效应。
安赛蜜-K或三氯蔗糖等人工甜味剂可减少厌恶感，并可能促进ONP的消费。一些人工增甜的ONP被营销为“无味”或“批准无调味”，这表明烟草行业将甜味排除在特征风味的决定因素之外。监管机构应将烟草制品中人工甜味剂带来的甜味作为特征风味的一个组成部分加以应对，以降低产品吸引力，减少从不吸烟者尤其是被甜味吸引的年轻人开始使用的可能性。
