Architects of Addiction: How Industry Designs Products to Be Appealing and Addictive

Over the decades, tobacco companies have manipulated the design and contents of cigarettes and other nicotine products, with the aim of making them both as attractive and addictive as possible.1 Such modifications aim to enhance appeal, mask health risks and build brand loyalty.1 More recently, transnational tobacco companies (TTCs) have also diversified their nicotine product lines to…

A long history of targeting doctors Health professionals, including medical doctors, dentists and pharmacists,70 have been targeted by tobacco companies, to help promote their products and to attempt to build trust and credibility. This has been primarily in the service of their own business goals, rather than to improve health outcomes for individuals or populations. A…

Tobacco companies use a wide range of strategies and tactics designed to keep people using their products and disrupt efforts to protect public health.190191192 Here we detail tactics used to target health professionals, and the professional environment in which they operate. These include direct approaches by tobacco companies and indirect approaches conducted by other organisations…

The Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN), which typically takes place annually in Poland, focuses on new nicotine products and ‘tobacco harm reduction.’ The GFN is organised by Global Forum on Nicotine Limited,326 which was known as KAC Communications until November 2024.327 For more information, please see the main Global Forum on Nicotine page. The GFN 2024 was…

The Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN), which typically takes place annually in Poland, focuses on new nicotine products and ‘tobacco harm reduction.’ The GFN is organised by Global Forum on Nicotine Limited,334 which was known as KAC Communications until November 2024.335 For more information, please see the main Global Forum on Nicotine page. The GFN 2023 was…

The Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN), which typically takes place annually in Poland, focuses on new nicotine products and ‘tobacco harm reduction.’ The GFN is organised by Global Forum on Nicotine Limited,341 which was known as KAC Communications until November 2024.342 For more information, please see the main Global Forum on Nicotine page. The GFN 2022 was…

The Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN), which typically takes place annually in Poland, focuses on new nicotine products and ‘tobacco harm reduction.’ The GFN is organised by Global Forum on Nicotine Limited,348 which was known as KAC Communications until November 2024.349 For more information, please see the main Global Forum on Nicotine page. The GFN 2021 was…

Smoking incurs significant costs. These are not limited to the health of the individual (through sickness, pain, and death); but also include economic (lost productivity); 355 and environmental costs (cigarette litter and destructive farming practices). Reductions in both tobacco sales and the number of people smoking therefore has the potential to generate significant benefits, both individual and societal.

Following bans on tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship (TAPS) in many countries, transnational tobacco company (TTCs) have redirected their promotional expenditure toward business-to-business marketing activities with retailers, in order to mitigate the impact of these restrictions.390391 For TTCs, retail outlets serve as a critical marketing channel, representing one of their last direct communication routes to consumers.

The Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association (ATHRA) describes itself as a “registered health promotion charity established to improve public health by reducing the harm from tobacco smoking in Australia”.470 Background ATHRA was founded by four Australian health practitioners in October 2017.470 It  has regularly campaigned and lobbied to try to overturn the Australian Government’s ban on retail…