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Pennings JLA, Hellmich IM, Boesveldt S, Talhout R. An ingredient co-occurrence network gives insight into e-liquid flavor complexity. Tob Induc Dis 2024; 22:TID-22-08. [PMID: 38204732 PMCID: PMC10777478 DOI: 10.18332/tid/175955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Part of the appeal of e-cigarettes lies in their available flavors. To achieve attractive flavors, e-liquids contain many different flavoring agents, which allow many flavoring combinations. To advance our knowledge of e-liquid flavors and compositions and to evaluate the effect of legislation, we determined whether there are ingredient combinations that are frequently used together. METHODS We used e-cigarette ingredient data from the European Common Entry Gate system (EU-CEG) as available on 31 December 2022. RESULTS In e-liquids, we found 214 ingredient pairs with a co-occurrence odds ratio greater than 10. Together, these consisted of 62 unique ingredients. Network analysis revealed that ingredients were grouped together based on their flavor and/or chemical structure. We identified two densely connected regions (clusters) in the network. One consisted of six ingredients with sweet-vanilla-creamy flavors. The second cluster consisted of 13 ingredients. While some of these have fruity flavors, others, such as alkyl carboxylic acids and dimethyl sulfide, are known to have unpleasant flavors. Additional data and literature analyses indicated that alkyl carboxylic acids can contribute to a creamy and sweet-fruity taste, whereas dimethyl sulfide can contribute to a more refined fruity taste. CONCLUSIONS These results exemplify that the flavor of e-liquids is not just the sum of its parts. Big data analyses on product data can be used to detect such patterns, but expert knowledge and additional data are needed for further interpretation. Monitoring of e-liquid flavors as well as ingredients will remain important to regulate e-liquid product attractiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeroen L A Pennings
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
| | - Ina M Hellmich
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
- Division of Human Nutrition and Health, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Sanne Boesveldt
- Division of Human Nutrition and Health, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Reinskje Talhout
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
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Pennings JLA, Pauwels CGGM, Schenk E, Talhout R. Circumventing cigarette regulation: Product characteristics of cigarette-like cigarillos on the Dutch market. Tob Induc Dis 2023; 21:91. [PMID: 37456608 PMCID: PMC10347962 DOI: 10.18332/tid/167476] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Revised: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Cigarillos have been reported to provide an alternative to cigarettes with a characterizing flavor, which are banned in the European Union. Additionally, they are cheaper than cigarettes. To better inform policy making, we wanted to gain better insight into the market situation for cigarillos in the Netherlands. METHODS We analyzed product data notified by manufacturers via the European Common Entry Gate system (EU-CEG), as extracted on the 1 June 2022. First, we identified parameters that allowed classifying cigarillos into cigar-like, cigarette-like and intermediate-type cigarillos. Next, we compared product characteristics for these groups. RESULTS We identified five parameters that allowed classifying cigarillos into subtypes: product weight, filter presence, leaf tobacco percentage in the product, flue-cured tobacco percentage in the product, and the number of flavorings. Almost a quarter (71/285) of the cigarillos on the Dutch market were classified as cigarette-like. Compared to other cigarillo types, these have a high number of flavorings (average n=43), including many sweet and fruity flavorings. The package types of cigarette-like cigarillos resemble those of cigarettes. However, 85% of the cigarette-like cigarillos are available in smaller pack sizes than allowed for cigarettes. When comparing data over the period 2019-2022, we found a decrease in the number of cigar-like cigarillos and an increase in the number of cigarette-like cigarillos, which hints at a shift in the market composition. CONCLUSIONS Cigarette-like cigarillos can provide a way to evade cigarette regulation. Moreover, their characteristics make them attractive for consumers, including young people. Regulators should consider amending regulations to close the regulatory loopholes that allow evading tobacco legislation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeroen L A Pennings
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
| | - Charlotte G G M Pauwels
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
| | - Erna Schenk
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
| | - Reinskje Talhout
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
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Carnicer-Pont D, Tigova O, Havermans A, Remue E, Ferech M, Vejdovszky K, Solimini R, Gallus S, Nunes E, Lange CC, Gomez-Chacon C, Ruiz-Dominguez F, Behrakis P, Vardavas CI, Fernandez E. Tobacco products in the European Union Common Entry Gate ( EU-CEG): A tool for monitoring the EU tobacco products directive. Tob Prev Cessat 2022; 8:10. [PMID: 35330752 PMCID: PMC8889498 DOI: 10.18332/tpc/145501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Revised: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Under the European Union (EU) Tobacco Products Directive (2014/40/EU) (TPD), manufacturers and importers of tobacco products are required to report information to the European Commission (EC) and Member States (MS) on products intended to be placed on the market. We describe the distribution of notifications to the EU Common Entry Gate (EU-CEG) and identify key fields for improvement on reporting cigarettes or roll-your-own (RYO) tobacco. METHODS A cross-sectional analysis of secondary data reported in the EU-CEG was conducted for tobacco products notified within EU-CEG between June 2016 and October 2019 for 12 EU MS. Analysis of compliance to specific regulations for priority additives that refer to cigarettes and RYO was conducted for 10 EU countries. RESULTS Overall, 39170 tobacco products were notified. This included 16762 (42.8%) notifications of cigars, followed by cigarettes 11242 (28.7 %), waterpipes 3291 (8.4%), cigarillos (n=1783), pipe (n=1715), RYO (n=1635), chewing tobacco (n=1021), novel tobacco products (n=839), herbal products for smoking (n=535), other (n=258), nasal (n=74) and oral tobacco (n=15). In cigarettes and RYO tobacco products, the proportion of ingredients notified in all countries that contained an unknown Chemical Abstract Services (CAS) number was 3.8% and 2.1%, respectively. The proportion of underreporting flagging of priority additives ranged from 15.9% in Malta to 41.3% in Lithuania, the mean proportion of underreporting of the variable 'priority additive' for the 10 countries together was 24.7%. CONCLUSIONS In the EU-CEG data base, for the period of analysis, a significant number of product notifications took place while large variations in the number of types of tobacco products notified across EU countries was noted. The timely monitoring of these data is needed so that products non-compliant within the EU-CEG system are assessed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dolors Carnicer-Pont
- Cancer Prevention and Control Programme, Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Department, Catalan Institute of Oncology, Barcelona, Spain.,Tobacco Control Research Group, Epidemiology and Public Health Programme, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute, Barcelona, Spain.,School of Medicine and Clinical Sciences, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Centre for Biomedical Research Network, CIBERES, Madrid, Spain
| | - Olena Tigova
- Cancer Prevention and Control Programme, Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Department, Catalan Institute of Oncology, Barcelona, Spain.,Tobacco Control Research Group, Epidemiology and Public Health Programme, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute, Barcelona, Spain.,School of Medicine and Clinical Sciences, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Centre for Biomedical Research Network, CIBERES, Madrid, Spain
| | - Anne Havermans
- Centre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, RIVM, Bilthoven, The Netherlands
| | - Eline Remue
- Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Matus Ferech
- Tobacco Control Team, DG SANTE B2, Cross-border Healthcare and Tobacco Control, Brussels, Belgium
| | | | - Renata Solimini
- National Centre on Addiction and Doping, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Silvano Gallus
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, IRCCS, Milan, Italy
| | - Emilia Nunes
- Department of Health, Ministry of Health, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Carl C Lange
- The Danish Safety Technology Authority, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Cristina Gomez-Chacon
- Tobacco Prevention and Control Unit, Deputy Direction of Promotion, Prevention and Quality, General Direction of Public Health, Ministry of Health, Madrid, Spain
| | - Francisco Ruiz-Dominguez
- General Directorate of Public Health and Pharmaceutical Management, Regional Ministry of Health and Families of Andalusia, Sevilla, Spain
| | | | | | - Esteve Fernandez
- Cancer Prevention and Control Programme, Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Department, Catalan Institute of Oncology, Barcelona, Spain.,Tobacco Control Research Group, Epidemiology and Public Health Programme, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute, Barcelona, Spain.,School of Medicine and Clinical Sciences, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Centre for Biomedical Research Network, CIBERES, Madrid, Spain
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