Chemical and toxicological characterization of commercial smokeless tobacco products available on the Canadian market

Some health experts are recommending that smokers who refuse to quit or refuse to use nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) such as nicotine-containing chewing gum switch to certain types of smokeless tobacco products (STP) such as Swedish snus. Other health experts disagree citing the uncertainty in the composition of commercially available STP, the lack of governmental regulations to ensure that STP advertised to meet certain standards (i.e., GothiaTek®) do actually meet such standards, and the uncertainty that any STP can provide as safe as alternative to smoking as NRT. One reason for uncertainty is the dearth of detailed chemical and toxicological information on contemporary STP. Unlike the situation with cigarettes, there are few standardized methods for analytical and toxicological studies of STP. Consequently, the objective for this work was to characterize several types of STP available on the Canadian market using the modifications of the Official Health Canada chemical and toxicological methods developed for cigarettes. Moist snuff samples tested had TSNA and B[a]P levels somewhat above the GothiaTek® standard while samples of Swedish snus, low-moisture snuff, and US-style chewing tobacco did not. Use of in vitro assays to assess STP toxicity was of limited utility in distinguishing product types.