The newest alternative to smoking, known as Heat not Burn, or HnB, is being lauded. Numerous new goods have already hit the market, and more are now undergoing consumer testing with the expectation of going on sale shortly. The goal is to preserve the enjoyment of smoking while minimizing danger by retaining the flavor and nicotine content of actual tobacco while removing the hazardous byproducts of its combustion. The tobacco industry believes that the success of e-cigarettes has opened the door, making long-time smokers eager to test new nicotine delivery methods for the first time. This hasn't always been the case. We now examine the background of heat not burn.

There is a lot of technology in the newest heated tobacco products, including lithium batteries, microprocessor control systems, and energy-efficient heating coils. However, the idea itself is seldom novel. In actuality, the fundamental concept is rather old.

A few years ago, shisha, often known as hookah, was one of the unexpected phenomena. The intricate water pipes themselves also became a must-have item for many young adults, and shisha bars sprang everywhere overnight. The hookah, however, is not a recent innovation; it has been used in the Middle East since at least the early 16th century and operates on the principle of "heat, not burn."

The issue with a hookah is that in addition to the flavor-infused vapor, you are also breathing in smoke and combustion byproducts from the charcoal, including carbon monoxide. If the tobacco is improperly packed or the coal is extremely hot, it may potentially catch fire and burn. But a lot of the danger associated with smoking is diminished. Some health organizations assert that hookah is just as harmful as smoking—if not more so—but this is untrue. According to a recent research, smoking hookah carries a 14% chance of:

 

So, the fact that tobacco may be heated for usage has long been recognized, and finally, tobacco businesses began to show an interest. They had been fighting a rearguard battle against acknowledging the dangers of smoking since the 1950s, but by the middle of the 1980s it was clear they had lost. Since fewer people were smoking, businesses began researching towards safer tobacco usage in an effort to retain consumers. 

Premier, which was introduced in 1988, was essentially a small, single-use hookah. It was a thin, aluminum tube about the size of a cigarette, with a charcoal pellet at one end and a filter at the other. A tobacco capsule in foil was sandwiched between the two. Inhalable flavorful vapour was produced when the charcoal was burned and heated the tobacco.

Premier, however, was a failure for RJR. Although the nicotine delivery was only moderately effective, the vapour was unpleasant. Smokers bemoaned the aftertaste of charcoal and the inconvenience of lighting it. RJR predicted that within two or three packs, smokers would have mastered Premier's use and become accustomed to its flavor, but most didn't bother; the typical customer purchased a pack, smoked one, and distributed the rest to their friends. One unintended consequence of this was that none of the pals would purchase their own pack.