Wait, is that a good thing? It’s better than smoking, but there are still concerns about a nicotine inhaler under development by Next Safety (sounds like the name of an orange traffic cone manufacturer).
Its drug-delivery device works similarly to a medical inhaler. The device injects tiny droplets of medication – or nicotine – into the air passage as the user inhales through a tube. The droplets are then absorbed through the lungs and into the bloodstream.
This allows the body to absorb drugs faster than oral medications, said Phillip Weaver, the director of Next Safety’s pulmonary division.
About 30 people were tested using the device earlier this month, the company said. According to the tests, the device delivers a smaller amount of nicotine to the body than cigarettes, but provides a stronger “kick” than smoking.
Next Safety has big plans for growth. It has 20 employees and moved into a 32,000-square-foot building in July.
It is hoping to raise about $130 million in private equity this fall, Hunter said.
The company expects to hire 3,600 employees over the next 18 months, he said.
We’d be curious to see the regulatory hurdles facing this device as compared to the obviously more harmful cigarette industry. Oh, to be regulated by the department of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms…instead of the Food and Drug Administration. (which one of those sounds like a more entertaining weekend?)
More from the Winston-Salem Journal and from Next Safety…