Health experts have expressed alarm about the growing use of tobacco-free nicotine pouches known as “snus” in Ireland.
Snus is widely available for purchase and is openly advertised in Ireland. The small white pouch resembles a miniature teabag and is placed between the gum and lip to deliver a release of nicotine, reports RTE.
Professor Ray Walley, a GP and board member of the Standing Committee of European Doctors — a body that represents national medical organisations at European level — has said Ireland should lead the world in banning snus, just as it did when it introduced the workplace smoking ban in 2004.
Speaking on RTÉ’s This Week, Prof Walley described these products as “highly addictive” and said they carry health consequences in their own right, reports RTE.
“These are gateways to further addiction issues, including tobacco,” he added.
Because the products contain no tobacco, they are not subject to the same restrictions that apply to other nicotine products containing tobacco, such as age limits and restrictions on advertising and branding, reports RTE.
A single pouch of snus can contain a nicotine level 20 times that of a cigarette, and France recently moved to ban the product.
Rise of snus
Snus began appearing in Ireland around 2019 and grew significantly in popularity around 2022 and 2023, a trend mirrored in countries across the world, reports RTE.
Last year, the global market for nicotine pouch products was estimated at nearly $7 billion (€6.1bn).
Global retail sales of nicotine pouches exceeded 23 billion units in 2024 — an increase of more than 50% on the previous year, reports RTE.
In Ireland, sales of one brand of nicotine pouches increased nearly five-fold within a single year.
“Nicotine pouches are widely available,” said Dr Denise Proudfoot of DCU, who is currently researching the health impacts of vaping and snus on young people in Ireland, reports RTE.
She added: “Pouches [snus] are available in many shops.”
Because they are tobacco-free, they can be sold and advertised without the restrictions applied to products such as cigarettes and vapes, and are also considerably cheaper to purchase, reports RTE.
Snus comes in a discreet container, dissolves slowly and produces no smell, making it very difficult to detect when a person is using it.
This adds to its appeal, as it can be used in public spaces where smoking and vaping are prohibited, reports RTE.
Last month, the World Health Organization issued what it described as a “strong warning” over the rapid expansion of these nicotine products, stating they “are being aggressively marketed to adolescents and young people.”
Dr Proudfoot said she has observed these products employing “slick and effective” marketing tactics targeting young people, reports RTE.
“It’s one of the big concerns that the WHO has is the marketing and the tactics that they’re using to entice people to start experimenting and start trying out the products and the flavours,” she said, reports RTE.
The WHO report specifically noted that tobacco companies are promoting snus under cigarette brand names and exploiting regulatory loopholes to expand their market.
“Snus is produced by the tobacco industry with one aim and that’s addiction,” Prof Walley said.
“They are targeting our children to ensure that they have a next generation of addicted population,” he added, reports RTE.
Health impacts of nicotine products
Prof Walley said that while the health consequences of tobacco are well established, nicotine itself is also harmful, though research into its specific effects remains less developed.
The nicotine concentration in snus far exceeds that of cigarettes, resulting in high rates of addiction, reports RTE.
Nicotine also has adverse effects on blood pressure, brain development, attention spans, anxiety and oral health.
Dr Proudfoot said she is worried about the spread of snus, particularly given the speed at which it has grown in popularity, reports RTE.
“It’s quite staggering. Sometimes research takes time to kind of catch up … we know nicotine is not a safe product.
“It has a health impact both physical and psychological, so it’s definitely worrying,” she said, reports RTE.
Regulations needed
The European doctors’ group has called for legislation to cover tobacco-free nicotine products such as snus.
They are seeking an increased level of taxation on heated tobacco and nicotine products to “prevent misleading ‘less harmful’ perceptions and discourage use,” reports RTE.
France has recently banned the sale of nicotine pouches, a step Prof Walley would support Ireland taking, though he believes an EU-wide regulatory approach would be the most effective solution.
In 2004, Ireland became the first country in the world to introduce a comprehensive workplace smoking ban, and Prof Walley said Ireland can again be a world leader on the issue of snus, reports RTE.
A bill to regulate the packaging and appearance of nicotine inhalation products such as snus is currently making its way through the Oireachtas.
Once enacted, it will be illegal to sell snus to anyone under the age of 18, reports RTE.
The retail display of snus in mixed retail outlets and the advertising of such products in all shops will also be prohibited.
The Department of Health said in a statement that Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has repeatedly called on the European Commission to revise legislation so that uniform regulations apply to nicotine products across the EU, reports RTE.
“The evidence is that what we have done [in regard to restriction of tobacco products] has worked,” Prof Walley said.
He added: “The tobacco industry are trying to exploit regulatory loopholes and undermine laws to fuel rapid growth of the usage of nicotine.
“They’re using the same methodology that they used successfully before.
“And we need to approach it in the same way that we have successfully, in many European countries, reduced tobacco use,” reports RTE.
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