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  • Characterisation of vaping liquids used in vaping devices across four countries: results from an analysis of selected vaping liquids reported by users in the 2016 ITC Four Country Smoking and Vaping Survey

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Original research
Characterisation of vaping liquids used in vaping devices across four countries: results from an analysis of selected vaping liquids reported by users in the 2016 ITC Four Country Smoking and Vaping Survey
  1. Brian Vincent Fix1,
  2. Richard J OConnor1,
  3. Maciej Lukasz Goniewicz1,
  4. Noel L Leigh1,
  5. Michael Cummings2,
  6. Sara C Hitchman3,
  7. Geoffrey T Fong4,5,
  8. Georges el Nahas6,
  9. David Hammond7,
  10. Ann McNeill8,
  11. Ron Borland9,
  12. Bill King10,
  13. Mary N Palumbo1
  1. 1 Dept. of Health Behavior, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York, USA
  2. 2 Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA
  3. 3 Department of Addictions, King’s College London, London, UK
  4. 4 Psychology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
  5. 5 Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  6. 6 Hollings Cancer Center, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA
  7. 7 School of Public Health and Health Systems, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
  8. 8 UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies, National Addiction Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, London, UK
  9. 9 School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  10. 10 Vichealth Centre for Tobacco Control, cancer council victoria, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
  1. Correspondence to Mr Brian Vincent Fix, Health Behavior, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, New York, USA; brian.fix{at}roswellpark.org

Abstract

Objectives This study presents an analysis of vaping products (VPs) purchased in the USA, Canada, England and Australia and assesses whether differences in regulations were associated with differences in the chemical composition of the VPs.

Methods April–September 2017, a total of 234 VP refill liquids and prefilled cartridges were purchased in convenience samples of retail locations in each country. Products were chosen from brands and styles most commonly reported by current VP users in the 2016 ITC Four Country Smoking and Vaping Survey. All products were tested for nicotine, tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs), minor tobacco alkaloids, organic acids and flavouring chemicals.

Results Consistent with the laws in Canada and Australia at the time of product purchase, nicotine was not detected in any of the VPs (n=10 in Canada; n=15 in Australia). US liquids (n=54) had a mean nicotine concentration of 16.2 mg/mL, (range=0.0–58.6) and English liquids (n=166) had a mean concentration of 11.9 mg/mL ((range=0.0–31.2) F(3244)=12.32, p<0.001). About 5% of English samples exceeded the UK’s 20 mg/mL nicotine limit. Substantial country differences were observed in levels ofTSNAs, with the USA being higher than elsewhere. Of all products tested, 18.8% contained at least one organic acid. Liquids purchased in England contained far more identifiable flavouring chemicals than those in the other countries.

Conclusions VP composition, particularly with respect to nicotine and flavouring, varies by country, likely reflecting both marketplace preferences and country-specific regulations. There are differences between nicotine levels claimed on the package and actual levels, particularly in England.

  • electronic nicotine delivery devices
  • nicotine
  • public policy

Data availability statement

No data are available. Deideitified survey data were used for the analysis presented in this manuscript.

This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited, appropriate credit is given, any changes made indicated, and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.

https://doi.org/10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2020-056338

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    Data availability statement

    No data are available. Deideitified survey data were used for the analysis presented in this manuscript.

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    Footnotes

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    • Contributors All authors contributed to the analysis of the data presented in this manuscript and have also drafted and critically revised it. All authors have granted final approval for the work published in this manuscript.

    • Funding This study was supported by grants from the US National Cancer Institute (P01 CA200512), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (FDN‐148477) and by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (APP 1106451). GTF was supported by a Senior Investigator Award from the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research. NicoTAR shared resource is supported by grants from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) (P30CA016056), and the NCI and the Center for Tobacco Products of the Food and Drug Administration (U54CA228110).

    • Disclaimer The sponsors had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis and interpretation of the data; preparation, review or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit for publication. The views and opinions expressed in this letter are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the US National Institutes of Health or the US Food and Drug Administration. Ann McNeill is a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Senior Investigator. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR, or the Department of Health and Social Care.

    • Competing interests MC and DH have each served as paid expert witnesses in legal challenges against cigarette companies. GTF has served as a paid expert witness on behalf of governments in litigation involving the tobacco industry. MLG reports research grant from Pfizer and membership in scientific advisory board to Johnson & Johnson, outside the scope of this paper.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

    • Supplemental material This content has been supplied by the author(s). It has not been vetted by BMJ Publishing Group Limited (BMJ) and may not have been peer-reviewed. Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s) and are not endorsed by BMJ. BMJ disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the content. Where the content includes any translated material, BMJ does not warrant the accuracy and reliability of the translations (including but not limited to local regulations, clinical guidelines, terminology, drug names and drug dosages), and is not responsible for any error and/or omissions arising from translation and adaptation or otherwise.