IQOS: 4 questions about this tobacco product, answered
October 08, 2025
Medically Reviewed | Last reviewed by Maher Karam-Hage, M.D., on October 08, 2025
¡°IQOS¡± (pronounced EYE-kose) is an alternative to cigarettes that uses heat rather than fire to deliver its nicotine payload.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)?first allowed its sale as a ¡°modified risk¡± tobacco product in the United States in 2019. However, the FDA also made clear that IQOS cannot be endorsed or promoted as ¡°safe¡± or "FDA approved."
¡°All tobacco products are potentially harmful and addictive,¡± the FDA¡¯s statement read at the time. ¡°And those who do not use tobacco products should continue not to do so.¡±
We spoke with tobacco and addiction expert , medical director of MD Anderson¡¯s?Tobacco Treatment Program. Here¡¯s what he wants you to know about IQOS.
What is IQOS?
IQOS is a tobacco heating system that uses a specific type of tobacco to deliver nicotine to users. ¡°Heat sticks¡± are inserted and heated up inside the device and the nicotine is released in aerosol form. Users inhale that aerosol, along with other tobacco components and flavors.
This delivery system makes IQOS different from regular cigarettes, which burn tobacco leaves and create smoke.
Is IQOS safer than smoking cigarettes?
Because it also uses tobacco, the cancer-causing chemicals released in the aerosol from an IQOS device are the same as those found in cigarettes. Some were found at even higher levels in IQOS, while most others were at lower levels.
Heating the tobacco instead of burning it may produce fewer cancer-causing substances. And some of those may be released in smaller amounts. But that doesn't mean IQOS is safe. We don¡¯t know yet if IQOS is less harmful or if it will cause less disease than smoking in the long run.
How does IQOS differ from e-cigarettes?
E-cigarettes are nicotine delivery devices that have a battery, a heating element and a container for liquid. When the liquid is heated, users inhale the aerosol as a vapor.
IQOS devices don¡¯t use heated liquids to deliver nicotine. Instead, they use real tobacco leaves that contain many of the same naturally occurring toxins and cancer-producing substances as cigarettes.
Another way e-cigarettes and IQOS devices differ is that e-cigarette liquids come in a variety of flavors. So far, IQOS only comes in regular tobacco flavor or menthol.
The only ways IQOS and e-cigarettes are similar? Both use a battery and do not actually burn tobacco.
What should smokers know about IQOS?
The FDA has not endorsed IQOS as a safe product. It also has not said it is an effective tool to help tobacco users quit smoking. So, the best way to quit smoking is still through a combination of medication and counseling.
If you smoke, the best thing you can do for your health right now is to quit all tobacco products. And, if you don¡¯t smoke, don¡¯t start. Not even the low-tar or ¡°light¡± cigarettes introduced decades ago have proved any safer for users in the long run. And, in some cases, they¡¯ve even caused new forms of disease.
Call 1-800-784-8669 or text QUIT to 47848 for help quitting tobacco. MD Anderson patients may also enroll for free in?MD Anderson¡¯s Tobacco Research and Treatment Program.
The cancer-causing chemicals released from IQOS are the same as those in cigarettes.
Maher Karam-Hage, M.D.
Physician