New Research Highlights Gaps in Global Regulatory Definitions of Tobacco and Nicotine Products

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A new study published in Tobacco Control examines how tobacco and nicotine-containing products are defined in national legislation across different countries, highlighting substantial differences in how newer products are covered by existing regulation.

The authors analysed 231 tobacco control laws from all 189 Signatories and Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), covering legislation up to December 2024. They examined how countries defined tobacco products, nicotine, nicotine-containing products, and specific product categories.

The study found that 169 countries (89%) explicitly defined tobacco products in their legislation, but only 56 (30%) had definitions covering all components mentioned in the FCTC definition. Definitions relating to nicotine products were less common: 76 countries (40%) defined nicotine and only 18 (10%) had a general definition of nicotine-containing products.

The authors argue that the rapid development of newer nicotine products has led countries to expand their legal definitions in different ways. While the WHO FCTC definition of tobacco products provides a common foundation, the authors conclude that regulatory inconsistency across countries “may create loopholes that could be exploited by the nicotine and tobacco industry to undermine and avoid regulations.”

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