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Dissolvable Tobacco: What Schools Should Know

Tobacco companies are constantly creating and marketing new products. While tobacco in any form is dangerous for children, dissolvable tobacco also provides teens with an easy way to hide tobacco use on school property.

A number of different brands of dissolvable tobacco are making their way to the market, including Stonewall, Camel Orbs, Sticks and Strips. A product currently available in New Hampshire is Ariva, which comes in the form of a small, flavored tobacco pill that dissolves in the mouth.

What is dissolvable tobacco?

  • It is made from finely milled tobacco that is held together with food-grade binders
  • Each Ariva pill contains 1.5 mg of nicotine, slightly less than the amount delivered from smoking one cigarette
  • It is placed on tongue or between the cheek and gum so that it dissolves, releasing nicotine

What does it look like?

  • Small and rectangular, similar in appearance to a package of candy, mints or pills
  • Available in flavors such as Wintergreen, Mint or Java
  • Small enough to fit in a pocket

Why should schools be concerned?

  • It is easier to use and hide dissolvable tobacco on school property
  • Teenagers may use it as a replacement for cigarettes or smokeless tobacco
  • It is easier to take more than one pill at a time providing much higher doses of nicotine

Nicotine can make students sick.

These symptoms result if small amounts are ingested:

  • Paleness
  • Sweatiness, shakiness
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Increased amounts of saliva

More serious symptoms result if larger amounts are experimented with:

  • Changes in blood pressure
  • Changes in heart rate
  • Confusion
  • Seizures or coma

For additional information about nicotine toxicity and/or guidelines for handling these exposures, contact the Regional Center for Poison Control and Prevention at 1-800-222-1222.

For additional information on School Tobacco Policies call the New Hampshire Tobacco Prevention & Control Program at 800-852-3345.

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