# Impact of new standards for tobacco products among dual e-cigarette/combusted cigarette users

> **NIH NIH R01** · DUKE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $471,881

## Abstract

The majority of experimental tobacco regulatory science (TRS) to date has focused specifically on the impacts
of possible tobacco product standards (e.g. limit on e-cigarette flavoring) on the use of the single tobacco
product targeted by the standard (e.g. e-cigarettes) among individuals who primarily or solely use the targeted
product (e.g. vapers). Whereas this “single target” approach has yielded a large amount of actionable
evidence, it has also resulted in a significant gap in the regulatory science evidence base for two interrelated
reasons: First, the narrow focus on single tobacco product (STP) users has resulted in very little evidence on
the impact of possible new product standards among multiple tobacco product (MTP) users who make up 30-
40% of the tobacco using population (10% of the U.S. adult population). Dual users of e-cigarettes (EC) and
combusted cigarettes (CC) make up 40% of the MTP using population. Second, our preliminary evidence
suggests that any two tobacco products vary in the degree to which they substitute for one another and that
possible new product standards targeting one tobacco product may have an impact on the appeal and use of
other tobacco products. In the proposed research, we will fill the gaps identified above by evaluating the effects
of limiting EC e-liquid flavors to tobacco-only on the appeal of, and preference for, CC in a sample of adult dual
users of EC and CC. In addition to evaluating the impact of limiting e-liquid flavor on the use of CC as they
exist now (Aim 1), we will also examine the effects of limiting EC liquid on CC preference following standards
that eliminate menthol in CC (Aim 2) and reduce CC nicotine content (Aim 3). We chose these possible policy
actions as they have already been enacted at local levels, have been the subject of proposed rulemaking, or
have been debated in the literature. In each experiment, adult dual EC/CC users will undergo preference
sessions during which they will make choices between an EC and a CC. We hypothesize that restricting the
flavor of EC to tobacco only, will increase preference for CC (Aim 1); that among menthol smokers, limiting EC
to tobacco-only will increase choices for non-menthol CC relative to when EC are a preferred flavor, or when
participants use their own EC device (Aim 2); and limiting EC to tobacco-only will increase choices for VLNC
cigarettes relative to when EC are a preferred flavor, or the participant's own device (Aim 3). The proposed
research will provide the FDA with actionable information on the impact of possible product standards for one
tobacco product on the appeal and use other tobacco products. This research will be conducted among
individuals who regularly use more than one tobacco product, and as such, are most vulnerable to changes in
patterns of use of non-targeted products following changes in the characteristics of products targeted by new
standards. Our aims are highly responsive to FDA research priorities as list...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10160863
- **Project number:** 5R01DA048454-03
- **Recipient organization:** DUKE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Francis Joseph McClernon
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $471,881
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-06-01 → 2025-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10160863

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10160863, Impact of new standards for tobacco products among dual e-cigarette/combusted cigarette users (5R01DA048454-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10160863. Licensed CC0.

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