Great danger of addiction

Nicotine vending machine tempts 1600 pupils

At the Viktring school center there is now a vending machine with nicotine pouches, which is stormed by the pupils. And the parents shake their heads.(Bild: Jennifer Kapellari, Krone KREATIV)

Dangerous - and at least for minors - forbidden nicotine pouches are now on sale in front of the Viktring school center in Klagenfurt. The rush for the addictive substances is huge, the principal is outraged - and the parents' hands are tied.

Snus, which is popular overseas and in Scandinavia and consists of small tobacco pouches that you put under your upper lip, is not allowed to be sold in Austria. Nevertheless, the addictive substance is widespread here, even among schoolchildren. The danger is that the concentrated nicotine enters the bloodstream via the oral mucosa, has a much stronger effect than cigarettes and is therefore quickly addictive.

It is therefore extremely curious that a vending machine offering similar products has been quietly and secretly installed in the middle of the country's largest school center. The pouches contain nicotine salts, making them just as dangerous as snus. "The vending machine is an invitation to try it out - irresponsible in the vicinity of three schools," says Brigitte Magnes, principal of the Viktring secondary school in Klagenfurt.