Commercial tobacco companies[i] continue to transform their products, allowing them to evade regulation and policies. Circumventing regulation increases allurement to new and emerging tobacco products among youth, leading to addiction, adverse health effects, and rising public health concerns. Since 2007, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS)/e-cigarettes have nearly tripled in nicotine strength (6% or greater), dropped in price by 70%, and have increased e-liquid compacity by twenty-nine times.[1]
Historically, there has been low regulation of e-cigarette products, allowing aggressive growth among youth. In 2009, the United States’ Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gained authorization to regulate tobacco products, but the Tobacco Control Act of 2009 did not include e-cigarettes/vapor products, allowing these products to continue their unregulated presence in the tobacco market. Another key component was the limitation on the FDA’s regulation authority to products that derive their nicotine from the tobacco plant.[2] After the introduction of JUUL in 2015 and continued growth of youth e-cigarette use, the Deeming Rule of 2016 was passed, giving the FDA authorization to regulate e-cigarettes. Following the Deeming Rule of 2016, additional regulations were placed on the ENDS market, through the FDA’s 2019 Rule Restricting Flavored e-cigarette products.
The delayed regulation of e-cigarettes and vapor products allowed tobacco companies to modify their delivery systems and create new alternatives to tobacco-based nicotine. Alternatives like synthetic nicotine are developed in laboratories instead of being extracted from the tobacco plant. This substance has been around for a while, but only recently integrated into vapor products.2 Top vapor companies marketed synthetic nicotine as “tobacco-free”, cleaner, and safer than traditional tobacco plant derived nicotine. Just recently in 2022, the FDA gained regulation authority over synthetic nicotine. Synthetic nicotine is still nicotine. Nicotine is a highly addictive stimulant with conveying research comparing its addictiveness to other substances like heroin or cocaine.
Another tactic that commercial tobacco companies use is creating nicotine analogs. Nicotine analogs are currently not fully regulated by the FDA and vapor products have been known to withhold ingredients from vapor packaging.[3] According to a recent publication from Yale and Duke Universities, Yale School of Medicine defines nicotine analogs as compounds that are not the same molecular structure of nicotine but are related or similar to tobacco-based nicotine’s structure. According to the article posted by Yale University, researchers have found significant discrepancies in what was printed on the labels and what was in vapor products.[4] These discrepancies in analog nicotine vapor products’ contents and labels escalate the growing concern of public health risks to using youth.
The landscape of e-cigarettes and nicotine products has undergone a significant “technological pivot,” where tobacco companies have moved beyond simple cigarette mimics and USB drives, to engineer high-capacity, sophisticated devices. These tactics are designed to maximize nicotine pharmacokinetics (how fast nicotine hits the brain) while bypassing regulatory barriers through rapid design modifications. To bring awareness to youth on these deceptive devices, tobacco companies use strong marketing presence and propaganda to allure and addict youth. Messages use ‘healthier,’ ‘cleaner,’ ‘no-tobacco,’ and ‘clear’ to strategically increase allurement among youth. These tactics provide apparent evidence that tobacco and vapor companies are consistently altering their products to circumvent policies to slow down regulation of their products.[5]
The public health scene regarding youth e-cigarette use has shifted from concerns about “experimentation” to nicotine dependence and physiological harm. Clinical research and data are helping to solidify understanding of how high-potency nicotine delivery systems affect the developing adolescent biology. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) youth e-cigarette use is affiliated with adverse mental health. In 2024, over 42% of youth who are currently using, reported moderate-to-severe symptoms of depression and anxiety and needing to use an e-cigarette within 30 mins of waking.[6] Research results indicate that those who use e-cigarettes are more than likely to experience adverse mental health symptoms and have episodes of unfavorable physical health effects.
[1] Truth Initiative. (2023, August 9). Bigger, stronger, and cheaper: Disposable e-cigarettes have more nicotine and are more accessible than ever
[2] American Lung Association. (2022, August 18). What is synthetic nicotine? How some tobacco companies tried to evade the law | American Lung Association
[3] Duke University. (2024, August 7). Some E-Cigarette Chemicals Mimic Nicotine, Possibly Bypassing Regulation | Duke Health
[4] University of Yale. (2024, August 7). Novel E-Cigarette Products Marketed to Contain Nicotine Analogs Instead of Nicotine Show Discrepancies Between Label Information and Contents | Yale School of Medicine
[5] Truth Initiative. (2026, February 26). Clearly flavored: the rise of “clear” e-cigarettes
[6] VanFrank, B., Williams, TR., Alcantara, IC., Hertz, M., AL-Shawaf, M., Meyers, C., et al. E-cigarette Use and Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety Among US Middle and High School Students. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025;22:250186. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd22.250186
[i] ‘Tobacco’ throughout this article, it will be in reference to commercial tobacco not traditional tobacco.