TAAT hemp cigarettes’ unsubstantiated cessation and harm reduction claims

Introduction The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has the authority to prohibit companies from making unauthorised harm reduction claims about tobacco products. The 2018 Farm Bill removed hemp products containing no more than 0.3% delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) from regulation as Schedule I controlled substances. Hemp cigarettes that contain no tobacco or nicotine and less than 0.3% THC fall into a loophole in federal law and may evade federal tobacco and drug regulation despite potential health harms.

Methods In August–September 2024, we analysed TAAT’s consumer website to determine whether the manufacturer made 12 marketing claims related to harm reduction or therapeutics that may lead customers to believe that TAATs are safe, safer than other cigarettes, or useful for cessation.

Results We found 307 (36.1%) of 851 sentences on TAAT’s website included one or more harm reduction or therapeutic claims. Of the 519 claims identified, the most frequent were for cessation/tobacco/smoking alternative (35.3%), no nicotine (10.2%), no tobacco (8.5%), hemp/CBD/reduced THC (7.3%) and less harmful/better/wellness (6.2%). The website did not provide independent verification to support claims.

Conclusions TAAT’s website contains hundreds of unsubstantiated harm reduction and therapeutic claims. While TAAT hemp cigarettes have evaded FDA regulations that apply to tobacco and drug products, the FDA can enforce laws prohibiting TAAT from making unauthorised therapeutic claims for unapproved products and the Federal Trade Commission can take action for deceptive health claims. States and localities can also prohibit TAAT from marketing cigarettes with unsubstantiated claims.