Ethical Dilemma #1 - Nicotine in Beverages


Smoking and nicotine are bad for your health -- that's a fact. So why would an American company create a lemon-flavoured drink laced with nicotine? This 8 oz soda contains the same amount of nicotine as two cigarettes. The company is marketing this drink to smokers who find themselves in places where smoking is prohibited. But nicotine is a highly addictive drug. Those who oppose this product claim that it is the equivalent to putting a drug in a soda can. Meanwhile, supporters say that the lack of second-hand smoke from these drinks will make nicotine use safer for others. Moreover, because the drink is legally classified as a dietary substance rather than as a drug or cigarette, it is not currently subject to the rules that regulate the sale of drugs and cigarettes. The introduction of this product appears to be serving consumer want.

Read the following articles to further your knowledge:





So... what do you think?

What are the ethical questions that this product raises? Should it be legal to sell this drink in a corner store? Why, or Why not? Explain your position using information you have learned from the course so far as well as your own person opinions.

Comments

  1. Anonymous20 June 2017 at 20:47

    Based on articles above, there is a conflict about whether selling of lemon-flavoured nicotine drinks is ethical. People who stay against this product believe drinking nicotine beverage is harmful to humans' physical and mental health due to the addictive of nicotine. However, advantages of this product are 'allowing smoking people to obtain nicotine legally' and 'lacking the chance of getting second-hand smokes'. Above all these theories, I think selling drinks laced with nicotine is definitely useful for the society. Despite of how poisonous for bodies of nicotine, people trend to keep smoking over years. The prohibition of selling nicotine drinks won't influence the desire of nicotine from smokers, but drinks can make them to have less impact on people who don't smoke since smokers can just drink water instead of release smoke into the atmosphere. Furthermore, I think there can be some rules for drinks depending on age groups of people. For instance, drinks are divided into several levels that contains different amount of nicotine. Younger and older people are allowed to buy drinks that have less amount of nicotine and people can chose a smaller bottle of drink if they want to keep healthy but can't stop addicting to nicotine. To sum up, selling drinks that contain nicotine should be legal. Also the more complete of this product and the more considerable of 'buying nicotine rules' will absolutely help humans in the future.

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    1. Unknown20 July 2017 at 02:27

      You have listed the advantage of the drink thoroughly and I completely agree with your point that nicotine drink will bring a positive effect, in the future the complete of the product will decrease the amount of green house gas and second-hand smoke significantly.

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  2. Anonymous20 June 2017 at 20:47

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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    1. Unknown20 July 2017 at 02:26

      This comment has been removed by the author.

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  3. Joe25 June 2017 at 17:09

    As we all know, a cigarette contains the amount of nicotine that can kill a mouse. The impact of nicotine is beyond all doubt. However, an American company create a lemon-flavoured drink laced with nicotine. It contains the same amount of nicotine as two cigarettes, which like I mentioned could kill two mice!
    These kind of drink are morally wrong. Although the company claimed that this kind of drink is capable of protecting people from second hand smoking, it is still harmful. If cigarettes have already been regarded as a failure, then the invention of “Nic Lite” is another one, a more serious one. What’s more, there is no law to prevent teenagers from getting this drink, which I believe will do more harm than cigarettes in the future.
    All in all, I don’t think drinks laced with nicotine is a good idea, but just a new way companies make money.

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    1. Unknown29 June 2017 at 04:06

      I totally agree your opinion, because there is no law about cigarettes and teenager, so it is hard to control it, I think there are no parents want their children touch cigarettes.

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    2. Unknown30 June 2017 at 06:32

      I like the points that you brought up in your answer. As this topic is something that's been discussed for quite some time now on the effects of nicotine and smoking/second hand smoking. As well as the regulation of no smoking/smoking nicotine allowed in major public spaces, how much of it is still in the safe zone, and advertising these kinds of products to a non specified targeted audience.

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  4. Anonymous26 June 2017 at 01:35

    I feel that this beverage should be allowed for sale at convenience stores, if a pack of nicotine gum can be sold at a corner store then why shouldn't this beverage. It could be marketed negatively towards the youth however they can also be used to benefit, like many of the articles stated, people who need to smoke as it is their addiction. On top of this it was also mentioned in a article that nicotine itself, yes is harmful, isn't a cause of cancer so therefor I feel that it isn't that big of an issue. This company could be using the addictive side affects of nicotine to benefit them, for an example if a non smoker buys this drink and becomes addicted they will keep buying this drink therefor creating a continuos source of income.

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    1. Joe27 June 2017 at 05:34

      I definitely agree with your opinion, but I think it would be better if there are laws relating to the sale of this kind of drinks.

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    2. Anonymous28 June 2017 at 13:03

      I agree with the points you have made about the drink as I also think the same. The drink can also reduce second hand smoking because people might replace this with smoking so I also think that's another positive thing and again, from a business point of view, the drink will make money because people want it and like you said if a non smoker buts this drink and gets hooked then the company will continue getting income.

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    3. Unknown29 June 2017 at 04:09

      Honestly I don't agree your opinion, for example, bad guy do some bad things, but it doesn't mean everyone can do bad thing. Yeah, it is a good way to earn money, but it can not help our society.

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    4. Anonymous4 July 2017 at 12:27

      Oh mackenzie I too agree that its not good to have nicotine for children because they risk addiction but there are already other options if nicotine is what children are looking for nicotine but they are available and this is an nother option to faze smoakers out of smoking while having no second hand smoke.

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  5. Unknown26 June 2017 at 06:35

    I would say that based on what's been happening right now with this topic, it's definitely a much better alternative to other nicotine products like smoking it, etc. As it won't cause second hand smoke effects to any nearby people and people with breathing issues or asthma. Though the lemon drink laced with nicotine is something that people can use as a counter to their desire for it there still may be different views on this whole thing. The articles mentioned that each bottle had roughly the same amount of nicotine that would be in two cigarettes. This could be a problem but due to people saying that it lacks the second hand smoke effects, its much safer to use than a nicotine cigarette and it mentioned that it's more of a "dietary substance" than an actual drug and it's not subjected to the rules of regulating the sales of drugs/cigarettes.

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    1. Anonymous28 June 2017 at 09:20

      I think the biggest advantage of this drink is that it can release the use of second hand smoke too.

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    2. Anonymous29 June 2017 at 15:00

      I like your point, I think its a better substance than other nicotine products. You explained that very thoroughly.

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    3. Anonymous4 July 2017 at 21:18

      I quite like your point Phillip. Second hand smoke is a big issue in places that have a lot of people who smoke.

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  6. Unknown26 June 2017 at 23:57

    Everything has its double sides，including this one. Nicotine in beverages has both advantage and disadvantage. on the plus side，it can bring more interests for the company. All around the world, there have approximately 1000 million smokers, for example, china is the world’s largest consumer and producer of tobacco, home to more than 300 million smokers and 42% of the world’s cigarette production, if there have a nicotine drink sell in china, I am pretty sure a lot of people will buy it, and the company will earn a lot. But on the down side, it will increase the population of smokers, in a lot of countries, parents really care about cigarette, so adolescent don’t have chance touch on nicotine. But if someone say that there have a drink, you can fell same as smoke, a lot of teenagers might try it and overdose. So, overall, I think that this drink are better not come into the market, beyond all doubt, it is a good way to earn money, but for the better life, it should be forbidden.

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    1. Joe27 June 2017 at 16:33

      In my opinion, forbidden smoking or other nicotine products is not feasible right now; the best thing people could do now is to use this kind of drinks to replace smoking.

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  7. Anonymous27 June 2017 at 16:52

    The main ethical questions being raised towards this product is how it’s a gateway for kids to get into smoking and becoming addicted to nicotine. Another important question, that’s being brought to my attention is how it’s a bypass or a way of skipping the law when you’re not allowed to smoke cigarettes. Yet people can have the nicotine drinks on flights just like they are doing in LAX airport and airplanes. I believe that is shouldn’t be sold at a corner store because it is easily assessable to kids. People think that the drink is a secondary solution to help their habits, but the drink is unhealthier than one cigarette. “Each 8-ounce bottle of Nik Lite contains the same amount of nicotine as to cigarettes.” (http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/press_releases/post/id_0928). I believe that the law shouldn’t allow the flexibility of having drinks of nicotine products in airports.

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    1. Unknown30 June 2017 at 06:52

      I like how you talked about how what this issue can have when kids are exposed to this kind of content in form of magazines, internet, seeing it at a store, etc. Which influences them on whether or not if they have it or not despite what it contains. Also about how it connects with what is the minimum legal age to have it as there seems to be no strict rules on it, some people just ignore them and have it anyways despite how much nicotine there is one of them which is same for a normal cigarette.

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  8. Anonymous27 June 2017 at 17:15

    I do believe that this beverage should be allowed to be sold at a corner store because there are may other similar product like nicotine sprays and gum that are easily accessible for people to help stop smoking and while this may be a thing that attract kid there are already product on the market that they can buy and this wont change anything by adding one product but it may help more smokers stop.

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    1. Anonymous28 June 2017 at 13:09

      My dearest Magnus, I also agree with you on this dilemma. Maybe this drink does help people quit their smoking and that is what matters if you're talking about people's health. This drink could be an another alternative to smoking and it too can help reduce second-hand smoking.

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    2. Anonymous29 June 2017 at 15:03

      I agree with you Magnus for saying that one little product being brought into the nicotine department won't change anything, because there are so many products that are already being used nothing would change.

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    3. Anonymous4 July 2017 at 05:04

      i don't agree with your comment as it shouldn't be easily accessible to the youth.

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    4. Anonymous4 July 2017 at 21:07

      There might be other nicotine products out on the market that have easy access but this nicotine bottle product contains 2 cigarettes worth of nicotine in one bottle. Other nicotine products have much less nicotine. So I have to disagree with your point. This much nicotine should not be accessible to youth.

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  9. Anonymous27 June 2017 at 17:27

    Based on the articles above, this beverage has positive and negative affects. In my opinion it is more good than bad. The only thing harmful as far as I can see is the nicotine and how addictive its properties are. This drink seems like a better alternative to smoking. It eliminates second hand smoke, damaging lungs and cuts Co2 emissions slightly from smoke. However nicotine is still an extremely addictive substance. This could be troubling for younger people that can get a hold of it. Currently as the articles say, this beverage is purchasable useable by the age of 16. In Canada, the age to buy cigarettes is 19. I personally think that the age at which the drink is legal should be 19. I think that under the eyes of the law this drink should be seen the same as cigarettes.

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    1. Anonymous28 June 2017 at 09:22

      I think selling this drink shouldn't be prohibited, but it definitely needs some specific laws since it still contains nicotine as you said.

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    2. Anonymous29 June 2017 at 14:57

      You made a very good point with the drink having less effectiveness with the human body by saying it doesn't release Co2 into our lungs.

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    3. Anonymous4 July 2017 at 05:06

      i agree with your comment as it can be good if it is used in a good way but when it is abused by the youth is when it becomes a problem.

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    4. Anonymous4 July 2017 at 12:24

      I totally agree with what you have to say and think your thinking is great

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  10. Anonymous27 June 2017 at 19:04

    Nicotine is an addicting drug, it is one of the leading reasons why people become addicted to cigarettes. That and Tabacco. These nicotine lined lemon drinks could be helpful in eliminating second-hand smoking and chemical pollution caused by a lit cigarette. I think that the amount of nicotine is a little high, however, having one bottle equivocate to two cigarettes might cause people to consume less of the product, especially if they drink only one bottle spaced throughout the day. One of the flaws that I see with the bottled nicotine is that some kids will have such easy access to the bottles that they could easily overdose themselves on the nicotine. Research says that nicotine is poisonous and just 5 cigarettes could kill an adult. If one bottle contains about 2 cigarettes worth of nicotine then drinking 3 bottles is a far overdose. In conclusion, I think this specific product should be used as a way to help people stop smoking. If the person was in a rehab facility being closely watched to make sure of no overdoses and being given less nicotine everyday, then the product would be ok to use. I believe that this nicotine coated drink should not be released to the public, just for everyones health and safety.

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  11. Anonymous28 June 2017 at 12:59

    In my opinion, this drink should be sold at corner stores because there are already alternatives to cigarettes such as nicotine sprays and nicotine gum then why not also add this drink? If this drink can help people reduce their smoking habits then I think it should've been in stores a long time ago. If this drink can reduce people from smoking then it can also help children and the next generation by reducing second hand smoking as well. The article also states that this product is a customer want so, from a business point of view, if the people are demanding it, then why not supply it? Although I agree that this product should be sold in stores, I also believe that it should be sold with a legal age which is the same age that cigarettes are sold at. I understand that nicotine is bad for you and im sure all the people that smoke do too, but that won't stop them or help them stop from smoking, they will continue and if this product might help a bit then I don't see a problem with making it legal and with supplying it at stores; after all the people WANT this product, that is what the article states so you would be making money by supplying it

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    1. Anonymous29 June 2017 at 15:05

      I like your point that it should be easily accessible, do you think there should be certain restrictions?

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  12. Jennifer Browne29 June 2017 at 03:56

    POSTED ON BEHALF OF JASON LIU
    The issue of smoking cigarette has always been a popular topic to discuss, because smoking is bad for our health as well as for the environment. Recently, an article of nicotine drinks has raised my concern, a lemon-flavored drink that contains the same amount of nicotine as two cigarettes. From my perspective, this drink should be legal to use while restricted to people who are above 18, and on the packing it should clearly state that the drink would damage people’s health as bad as cigarette. Even though people restrict the nicotine drink, the desire of smoking is not affected at any degree. As a result people will still smoke cigarettes, which is worse than nicotine drinks because cigarettes will produce green house gas, which will aggravate global warming. In addition, this drink provides a chance for smokers to obtain nicotine in indoor conditions, because second-hand smoke doesn’t exist in nicotine drinks. Rules such as limited purchase quantity per person each day or restricted to adults and so on, because this product is still not mature enough, so laws about them haven’t be http://set.in/ conclusion, as the product and the laws about it become more mature, the drink can definitely have a positive impact overall.

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