Assessment of Nicotine delivery capabilities and evaluation of human health risk of metals associated with selected tobacco products

The use of smokeless tobacco has increased, particularly among Ghana's youth, due in part to perceived medicinal benefits and the belief that it is less harmful and non-addictive. In response to this trend, we systematically classified 51 different tobacco products based on their potential toxicity as determined by potentially toxic elements, addiction potential, and nicotine delivery capability. Moisture, pH, and percentage-free base nicotine were measured using certified methods. X-ray fluorescence techniques were used to determine tobacco products' concentrations of target elements (Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mn, Rb, Sr, Mo, V, S, U, Zr, Tl, and Zn). Locally produced snuff products had the highest nicotine delivery capacity, with a pH of 9.73 and 96.98% freebase nicotine. Dried tobacco leaves followed closely, with a mean pH of 7.39 and percentage free base nicotine of 25.93%, whereas cigarette products had the lowest nicotine delivery capability (mean pH: 5.49; percentage free base nicotine: 0.33%). In the snuff category, menthol-flavored products delivered more nicotine (pH of 9.96; percentage free base nicotine of 98.8%) than moringa-flavored alternatives (pH of 9.77; percentage free base nicotine of 98%). Users of the smuggled cigarette product C6 were found to be susceptible to increased non-carcinogenic health effects, as indicated by a hazard index (HI) value of 1108.35, while C4, with the highest pH of 5.58 and a corresponding %A (addiction potential) of 0.70, demonstrated the greatest addiction potential among the examined cigarette products. Our findings indicate that locally produced snuff and dried tobacco leaves have potentially high addictive properties, emphasizing the risk of tobacco dependence. Furthermore, these products may have non-carcinogenic health effects, as indicated by elevated hazard quotients and hazard indices. These findings provide important insights into the various characteristics of tobacco products in Ghana, which may aid in developing targeted public health interventions.