Youth Protection Act

Styria bans nicotine pouches under the age of 18

Nicotine pouches are odorless and inconspicuous, and many pupils even use them during lessons.

(Bild: Andrii/stock.adobe.com)

Nicotine pouches are becoming increasingly popular with young people - and often even children. As they are not covered by the national tobacco law, more and more federal states are putting a stop to the addictive nicotine bombs. Styria has now also passed a corresponding ban for under-18s.

While schoolchildren used to hide in parks to smoke cigarettes in secret, they can now get a nicotine hit inconspicuously, even in class - and legally so far. We are talking about nicotine pouches, which have been on the market in Austria since 2019 and are particularly popular among teenagers and young adults.

Nicotine bombs suitable for everyday use
The small white pouches are simply placed under the upper lip and the nicotine is absorbed via the mucous membrane - completely odorless and inconspicuous. The high content of highly addictive nicotine is often seriously underestimated. 

Because nicotine pouches - unlike "real" snus - do not contain tobacco, they are not subject to the German Tobacco and Non-Smoker Protection Act. This means that, in theory, any twelve-year-old can get a full nicotine buzz completely legally. 

More and more states with bans
This is why more and more federal states are pushing ahead and banning the pouches in their respective youth protection laws. Following Upper Austria, Salzburg and Tyrol, a ban on nicotine pouches for under-18s was also passed in the Styrian state parliament on Tuesday as part of an amendment to the Youth Act. It comes into force on October 1.  

For the responsible ÖVP state councillor Simone Schmiedtbauer, this is "the most important innovation" in the Youth Act. Because: "Nicotine pouches are extremely harmful and quickly addictive. And they are unfortunately becoming more and more popular. As early as 2022, 13% of young people stated that they had used nicotine pouches or similar products in the last month."

"Youth protection alone is not enough. We need product regulation at national level, a ban on advertising and sponsorship and higher taxation."

Waltraud Posch, Sucht-Präventionsstelle Vivid

This law is also an urgently needed step for addiction experts. "We very much welcome it, because nicotine pouches are particularly addictive, but unlike all other nicotine products, they are not regulated," says Waltraud Posch from the Styrian addiction prevention center Vivid. However, the expert also emphasizes: "Youth protection alone is not enough. We need product regulation at national level, a ban on advertising and sponsorship and higher taxation."