TY  - JOUR
AU  - Chu, Kar-Hai
AU  - Hershey, Tina B
AU  - Hoffman, Beth L
AU  - Wolynn, Riley
AU  - Colditz, Jason B
AU  - Sidani, Jaime E
AU  - Primack, Brian A
PY  - 2022
DA  - 2022/3/25
TI  - Puff Bars, Tobacco Policy Evasion, and Nicotine Dependence: Content Analysis of Tweets
JO  - J Med Internet Res
SP  - e27894
VL  - 24
IS  - 3
KW  - tobacco
KW  - policy
KW  - social media
KW  - e-cigarette
KW  - twitter
KW  - mHealth
KW  - dependence
KW  - addiction
KW  - nicotine
AB  - Background: Puff Bars are e-cigarettes that continued marketing flavored products by exploiting the US Food and Drug Administration exemption for disposable devices. Objective: This study aimed to examine discussions related to Puff Bar on Twitter to identify tobacco regulation and policy themes as well as unanticipated outcomes of regulatory loopholes. Methods: Of 8519 original tweets related to Puff Bar collected from July 13, 2020, to August 13, 2020, a random 20% subsample (n=2661) was selected for qualitative coding of topics related to nicotine dependence and tobacco policy. Results: Of the human-coded tweets, 2123 (80.2%) were coded as relevant to Puff Bar as the main topic. Of those tweets, 698 (32.9%) discussed tobacco policy, including flavors (n=320, 45.9%), regulations (n=124, 17.8%), purchases (n=117, 16.8%), and other products (n=110, 15.8%). Approximately 22% (n=480) of the tweets referenced dependence, including lack of access (n=273, 56.9%), appetite suppression (n=59, 12.3%), frequent use (n=47, 9.8%), and self-reported dependence (n=110, 22.9%). Conclusions: This study adds to the growing evidence base that the US Food and Drug Administration ban of e-cigarette flavors did not reduce interest, but rather shifted the discussion to brands utilizing a loophole that allowed flavored products to continue to be sold in disposable devices. Until comprehensive tobacco policy legislation is developed, new products or loopholes will continue to supply nicotine demand. 
SN  - 1438-8871
UR  - https://www.jmir.org/2022/3/e27894
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/27894
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35333188
DO  - 10.2196/27894
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/27894
ER  -