‘People are more willing to listen to an influencer’: How nicotine became a problematic health trend

By Amber Louise Bryce Published on 09/05/2026 - 7:25 GMT+2 Share Comments Share Facebook Twitter Flipboard Send Reddit Linkedin Messenger Telegram VK Bluesky Threads Whatsapp

Wellness influencers have been rebranding nicotine as a “natural” solution to improve focus and productivity - but experts warn this could lead to longer-term issues down the line.

From migraine meals to fibremaxxing, not a day goes by without another strange (and almost always dubious) wellness trend taking over the internet.

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This latest one, however, has been especially persistent.

Online influencers have been reframing nicotine as a natural health hack, claiming that when used in the form of pouches, gum or patches, it can help improve cognitive abilities, boost productivity, and assist with weight management.

Nicotine is a naturally occurring stimulant found in tobacco plants, and is known to be highly addictive due to releasing dopamine in the brain.

While most commonly associated with cigarettes, nicotine replacement products have grown in popularity through products such as vapes and oral pouches. The latter experienced a 113% annual global growth from 2020 to 2024, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Still, research remains limited on the health consequences of consuming nicotine alone. This has left space for biohackers - people who optimise their physical and mental health through lifestyle hacks - to seize on the narrative and exaggerate nicotine’s stimulating qualities.

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“When it comes to these wellness claims, they often take something that's a kernel of truth, and then they run with it, and they take it a little bit further than perhaps what the evidence suggests,” Angela Difeng Wu, a senior researcher and lecturer at Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, told Euronews Health.

“Nicotine, because it’s a biologically active drug, does act on the brain. It acts on the receptors, it's a stimulant. It can have these short-term effects on alertness, attention, appetites, and mood, but these short term effects don't necessarily translate into something that could be used as a wellness treatment,” she added.

Context is also important here, Wu said. While nicotine replacement therapies will be a healthier alternative for people trying to quit cigarettes, they come at the cost of a new addiction for those that have never smoked before.

“There hasn't been epidemiological data that suggests. That we should be as worried about nicotine harms when it comes to, for example, the tobacco harms of cardiovascular disease and so on, but that doesn't mean that it is harm-free,” she said.

“Becoming dependent on nicotine is itself a harm that is worth considering.”

The rise of nootropics

The post-pandemic years have seen a growing interest in nootropics, which are natural or synthetic compounds that can enhance cognitive abilities. Popular nootropics include caffeine, Ashwagandha and L Theanine.

Many consumer brands have capitalised on the trend, with the functional drinks market (drinks infused with vitamins and plant-based stimulants) estimated to reach $300-$400 (€255-€340) billion by the mid-2030s, according to Grand View Research.

Nicotine products are part of the same boom, with social media influencers hoping to profit by framing them as fast fixes to complex psychological issues.

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“It's quite easy for us to be sold something, whether that is to do with menopause care, or any other type of care,” said Wu.

“We're seeing a problem with wellness culture and vitamins and whatnot, where people are more willing to listen to a social media influencer or their peers than official sources.”

Tackling social media’s power is an ongoing issue, although when it comes to nicotine products, countries across Europe have been gradually implementing new regulations to combat their use among younger people.

Last month, the United Kingdom approved an anti-tobacco bill to restrict anyone born after 2008 buying tobacco products. This includes the sale of vapes.

Wu said this regulation is important, but that the policies and dialogues surrounding nicotine products should take into account cultural context.

“It's about ensuring that we have true opportunities for helping people who do smoke to stop smoking, and at the same time appreciating nicotine for itself and understanding that it has a very different harm profile. It is a lot less harmful than smoking cigarettes, but it's not necessarily harmless.”

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