However, the facts don’t exactly support Schumer’s arguments. Moreover, restricting the product could have harmful impacts on the health of those who are trying to stop smoking.

In the release, Schumer expressed concerns about the rising popularity of Zyn, a product he described as a “quiet and dangerous” alternative to vaping and smoking. He indicated that without government intervention, the product could be the next trend in addiction among American teenagers, similar to the spike in teenage vaping seen in recent years.

Senate Majority leader Chuck Schumer has called on federal agencies to crack down on Zyn nicotine pouches, saying the product will be the next "trend in addiction for teens."

Schumer has asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Federal Trade Commission to take action on Zyn's marketing practices and health effects, the New York Democrat said in a news release on Sunday.

"Amid federal action against e-cigs and their grip on young people, a quiet and dangerous alternative has emerged and it is called Zyn,” Schumer said in a statement. "I am delivering a new warning to parents because these nicotine pouches seem to lock their sights on teens and use social media to hook them."

He continued to say that "the amount of nicotine is highly addictive and much more needs to be done to understand and communicate the health risks for young people."

In response, the parent company of Zyn said it meets and exceeds the industry regulations.

However, Schumer has his facts wrong. The reality is that these products are a less dangerous way to consume nicotine and potentially stop smoking.

But Schumer's framing has the story backward. Zyn is not a dangerous alternative to vaping but a dramatically safer alternative to smoking. One of the reasons smoking has declined substantially over the last decade is because safer nicotine alternatives like vapes and Zyn are switching smokers away from cigarettes. The closest equivalent for which we have decades of data is an oral smokeless tobacco called snus. Snus is most prevalent in Sweden, and not coincidentally, Sweden has the lowest smoking and lung cancer rates in Europe because those interested in using nicotine do so in a much safer form.

Moreover, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Tobacco Survey showed that a minuscule percentage of minors are actually using the pouches.

Among middle and high school students, e-cigarette products were the most used tobacco product in 2023 (7.7%; 2.13 million), followed by cigarettes (1.6%), cigars (1.6%), nicotine pouches (1.5%), smokeless tobacco (1.2%), other oral nicotine products (1.2%), hookahs (1.1%), heated tobacco products (1.0%), and pipe tobacco (0.5%).

If people wish to try nicotine pouches or other tobacco alternatives, the state has no business interfering unless it actually involves the sale of these substances to children. Schumer did not provide any evidence or examples that Zyn is specifically marketing to children. Moreover, the data shows that teenage use of the product is very low. This is hardly an excuse to call on federal action to further regulate the product – especially if it helps people to quit smoking.

Moreover, using the government to crack down on tobacco alternatives tends to create other problems. In California, it was revealed that prohibiting flavored vapes only pushed people to consume more cigarettes. Even further, they typically don’t accomplish their objectives.

READ MORE: Whoops! CA Flavored Tobacco Ban Leads to Huge Tax Revenue Loss, Cuts in Early Childhood Services

Study Shows Government Bans on Vapes Are Sending Smokers Back to Their Old Habits

Perhaps instead of trying to regulate people’s personal lives, Schumer and his ilk should consider doing their jobs and ensuring the government isn’t infringing on people’s rights.