Effect of menthol/mint-flavored pods on young JUUL E-cigarette users’ subjective experience, puffing behavior, and nicotine exposure: a pilot study.

Introduction:
This text provides an analysis of a study examining the impact of menthol/mint flavor manipulation on young people's puffing behavior, subjective experience, and nicotine exposure when using JUUL e-cigarettes. The study aims to understand the potential risks associated with menthol/mint flavors, which have been banned except for in menthol and tobacco flavors in pod-based e-cigarette devices.

Key Points:

* The study involved 33 current JUUL users aged 18-24, who attended two 60-minute ad libitum e-cigarette use sessions, one with menthol/mint flavor and the other with classic tobacco flavor.
* Puff topography, plasma nicotine concentration, and subjective experience were measured during the sessions.
* Participants reported higher satisfaction, pleasurable/interest to use, willingness to use again, enjoyment, urge to vape, product appeal, taste, and concentration when using the menthol/mint flavor compared to the classic tobacco flavor.
* however, there were no significant differences in plasma nicotine boost or puff parameters between the two conditions.
* The study suggests that menthol/mint flavor significantly increases e-cigarette users' subjective experience.
* Regulating menthol/mint flavor may be a promising strategy to curb e-cigarette use among young people.

Main Message:
The study highlights the potential risks associated with menthol/mint flavors in e-cigarettes, particularly in pod-based devices such as JUUL. While the study did not find significant differences in plasma nicotine boost or puff parameters, participants reported a more positive subjective experience when using the menthol/mint flavor. The findings suggest that regulating menthol/mint flavor may be an effective strategy to reduce e-cigarette use among young people. Further research is needed to understand the long-term effects of menthol/mint e-cigarettes on a variety of outcome measures to inform policymakers.

Li W, Vargas-Rivera M, Eissenberg TE, Shihadeh a, Talih S, Maziak W. Effect of menthol/mint-flavored pods on young JUUL E-cigarette users’ subjective experience, puffing behavior, and nicotine exposure: a pilot study. Drug and alcohol dependence. 2022;237:109516. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2022.109516