In 1999, the leading cigarette producer, Phillip Morris, was sued for lying about the adverse health effects of cigarettes and targeting youth to maximize their profits. Phillip Morris has since left the cigarette industry, and has instead turned to a new product: Zyn.
Zyn, a small flavored nicotine pouch placed between the gums and lips, has recently exploded in popularity across the US and Europe. The powder in these pouches dissolves in the mouth and releases nicotine into the bloodstream.
At St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes, nicotine use has adversely affected students for years, but recent usage has spiked. Similar to vaping, Zyn is marketed to teens with alluring flavors like peppermint, citrus, and espresso, with colorful packaging which adds to its intrigue for younger audiences. To further add to its interest, Zyn runs a reward system where buyers can turn in used tins on their website for a certain number of points to be redeemed for various products, including an iPad for 7550 points. People can turn in used tins on their website for fifteen points each, which equates the iPad to 500 tins of Zyn.
A national survey on drug use from Monitoring the Future revealed that in 2023, 1.9% of 10th graders and 2.9% of 12th graders used nicotine pouches. In 2024, those numbers had grown to 3.4% of 10th graders and 5.9% of 12th graders using pouches.
Dean of Students Ms. McGuire, shared that the first time she knew there was a problem at SSSAS was two years ago down in the senior lounge; “There were kids using Zyns and then putting the used Zyn packages up on a wall.”
It seems like not much has changed. Instead of the senior lounge, now it’s the boy’s math wing bathroom. There, male students openly display their empty Zyn pouches on the wall. The casings on the wall have been used and then stuck on the bathroom stall in a line.
One senior boy says, “I couldn’t quit during school or my grades would drop. I get like brain fog if I get off it too long.” Another adds, “I can’t focus without it, probably because I’m addicted.”
However, the Saints community isn’t the only one affected by Zyn, because according to The American Lung Association, over 25% of users in the US are 18-20 years old, which is under the legal age to buy nicotine products.
Zyn packs are available for purchase at a plethora of convenience stores for $5.29, and each pack contains 15 pouches. For the addicted, who typically use several pouches a day, this can be costly. One senior boy stated “I buy about three a week, so like 12 [packs] a month probably.” When asked how much he spends, he exclaimed “Oh lord a lot! Probably like 50-60 dollars a month.”
In her interview, Ms. McGuire said “When you get addicted to nicotine, you have, at that point, become kind of like a slave to that industry.” Teens who start nicotine usage with Zyns could get addicted, and move onto more harmful nicotine products like cigarettes or vapes in order to satisfy their addiction. Additionally, studies done by Yale Medicine show that people are more likely to get addicted to nicotine pouches if they start using them at a young age because their brains are still developing.
Through student interviews and a student survey, a variety of perspectives on the topic were recorded. Majority of the students who use Zyn are upperclassmen, although the survey showed that there are users in every grade. When asked if they knew of any girls who use Zyns, all of the interviewees, who were senior boys, had the same answer. “99% of the girls I know don’t smoke, so I’d say it’s mostly a guy thing,” and “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a girl just pop one regularly. Maybe you can convince them like once in a while but they never do it.”
Pre-pandemic, the main nicotine use in school was vapes. One senior boy stated, “I started Zyning when I had to quit vaping, which was after sophomore year. Most people got into nicotine around that time.”
When asked if they believed the school had a Zyn problem, a majority of interviewees said no. One senior boy said “It depends on what you call a problem. I think there’s a lot of people who use them, but I don’t know if it’s a problem. They’re not really that bad for you.”
Zyns are marketed as a safer alternative to vaping and a way to help quit nicotine. Zyns have also recently overtaken vaping due to their discrete nature and long-term buzz. Health and Human Sexuality teacher Ms. Mazur had this to say on the health effects of Zyn usage: “Zyn doesn’t produce any smoke, you don’t have to spit, so it’s more discrete, and there’s no tobacco in it, it’s just the nicotine. You’re not getting any of the carcinogens in the actual tobacco plant.” While Zyn’s may not cause the same harm that cigarettes and other tobacco products do, the long term effects are still unknown. Similarly, Ms. Mazur stated that “It’s a newer product, so we don’t really know the long term health effects. Nicotine is a highly addictive stimulant and that’s even more dangerous for teens because the brain is still developing.”
When asked if Zyns could possibly be used to quit vaping, Ms. Mazur said that “one pouch (of the 3mg) is about the equivalent of one cigarette as far as the nicotine that you are getting. The difference would be with smoking, you do get the nicotine absorbed much faster into the bloodstream, while with Zyn you are getting it over a slower period. So it might help people quit smoking, but I certainly wouldn’t think that it’s a tool to lean on.”
While nicotine usage has become fairly common amongst teenagers, it is important to know that the school is providing education and support for those who are struggling. According to Director of the Upper School Mr. Mallett, the school is aware that high school is the time for “trying new experiences” and “risk taking,” but this doesn’t reflect the integrity of the student. In fact, if a student comes to a faculty member asking for help, that student will not be in trouble, but rather will be given resources and support in order to combat their nicotine addiction.
