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. 2017 Oct;3(4):374-387.
doi: 10.18001/TRS.3.4.1.

Effect of Flavors and Modified Risk Messages on E-cigarette Abuse Liability

Andrew J Barnes  1 , Rose S Bono  2 , Rebecca C Lester  3 , Thomas E Eissenberg  4 , Caroline O Cobb  5
Affiliations

Effect of Flavors and Modified Risk Messages on E-cigarette Abuse Liability

Andrew J Barnes et al. Tob Regul Sci. 2017 Oct.

Abstract

Objectives: To measure e-cigarettes' abuse liability compared to conventional tobacco cigarettes under flavor and message conditions amenable to regulation.

Methods: Two studies used 2×2 within-subjects designs with factors of e-cigarette flavor (Study 1: tobacco vs. menthol; Study 2: cherry vs. unflavored) and message (Study 1: reduced harm vs. no message; Study 2: reduced exposure to carcinogens vs. no message) with cigarette smokers (N(total) = 36). Linear mixed effects models assessed abuse liability for tobacco products. Outcomes included the price after which consumption is zero (the maximum amount participants would pay for a tobacco product) from the multiple choice procedure (MCP) and cigarette purchase task (CPT) and demand elasticity (price sensitivity) from the CPT.

Results: In the MCP, the price where consumption reached zero was significantly lower in all e-cigarette conditions except tobacco flavor (message or no message) compared to cigarettes (p < .05 each). Demand elasticity was significantly higher for menthol/no message and unflavored/reduced exposure message conditions relative to cigarettes (p < .05 each).

Conclusions: Flavors and modified risk messages included with e-cigarettes may affect e-cigarette abuse liability among smokers, suggesting regulatory pathways to influence demand for conventional and alternative tobacco products.

Keywords: abuse liability; e-cigarette; flavor; risk messages.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest Statement The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Examples of Multiple Choice Procedure and Cigarette Purchase Task for a Reduced Harm Menthol-flavored E-cigarette.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Multiple Choice Procedure Predicted Mean Crossover Points by Study and Condition. Note: Crossover points reflect mean (+SEM) in US $ (United States dollars). Asterisks (*) indicate a significant difference relative to own-brand cigarettes using linear mixed models adjusted for own-brand cigarette menthol/non-menthol preference and MCP trial (1–5) and brackets indicate a significant pairwise difference between those 2 e-cigarette conditions using Wald test (ps < .05).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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