University of Otago researchers have sounded warnings over flavoured cigarette capsules, with a new study suggesting young people are vulnerable to them.
When crushed, the capsules add a flavour - typically fruit or menthol - to the cigarette smoke inhaled, allowing users to customise their smoking experience and reduce the harshness of smoking.
Otago University researchers working under the ASPIRE2025 project sought to examine how young adults responded to the products.
Their findings indicated susceptible non-smokers saw flavour capsules as more appealing, and were more likely to experiment with these than with unflavoured cigarettes.
"Tobacco companies have recently made much of their desire to promote a smokefree world," said Professor Janet Hoek, of Otago's departments of public health and marketing.
"However, these claims are inconsistent with their product innovations, which make smoked tobacco products more appealing to non-smoking young people."
In the study of 425 smokers and 390 susceptible non-smokers, smokers preferred unflavoured cigarettes to the capsule flavours tested while susceptible non-smokers showed the reverse pattern and preferred the flavoured capsule cigarettes to the unflavoured option.
Susceptible non-smokers were more than three times as likely to choose a "fruit burst" or "pineapple and mango" flavour than an unflavoured cigarette.
As well as using a choice experiment, the researchers also examined scenarios, where smokers and susceptible non-smokers indicated how likely they would be to accept different cigarettes offered to them.
"Smokers were more likely to take an unflavoured cigarette offered to them than a flavoured capsule cigarette, while susceptible non-smokers were more likely to take a flavoured capsule option than an unflavoured cigarette," Hoek explained.
"Susceptible non-smokers were significantly more likely than daily smokers to view flavoured capsule cigarettes as smoother, more fun to smoke, more attractive and more stylish.
"Because most smokers give taste as the main reason why they smoke a particular brand, it is logical that they are not interested in new products that will change that taste.
"By contrast, susceptible non-smokers are likely to prefer a product that makes smoking a more palatable experience."
Hoek said the findings showed how important it was to continue monitoring tobacco companies' marketing strategies.
"Evidence that flavour capsules are more appealing to non-smokers than to smokers suggests policy makers need to be vigilant and ensure product innovations cannot undermine smokefree goals."