Quitting Smoking With ... Smoke? Unauthorized Claims Used by Herbal Cigarette Manufacturers.

This article examines the marketing claims and product characteristics of herbal cigarettes sold on Amazon.com, focusing on their unauthorized smoking cessation and health claims. Herbal cigarettes, made from non-tobacco plant materials such as hemp and tea leaves, are often promoted with misleading assertions that they help users quit smoking or pose fewer health risks than tobacco cigarettes, despite lacking FDA approval for cessation and containing harmful smoke constituents. The study found that 78.4% of products made cessation claims and 45.1% claimed reduced risk compared to tobacco cigarettes, while only 35.3% displayed visible health warnings on packaging. The findings highlight the need for regulatory enforcement to prevent deceptive advertising, implement appropriate health warnings, and protect consumers—especially youth—from potentially misleading marketing of herbal cigarettes.