Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Sparks Rumors He Put a Nicotine Pouch Into His Mouth During Health Secretary Confirmation Hearing

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sparked an online debate on whether he was using a popular nicotine product during his Health Secretary confirmation hearing on Thursday, January 30.

The 71-year-old — who recently launched his "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) campaign — was seen popping something into his mouth and appearing to hold it in his lower lip, between his gum and cheek.

The clip quickly circulated on X, formerly known as Twitter, as users in the comments section argued over whether he was using a nicotine pouch — such as Zyn or Alp — or just popping a mint.

Country music website Whiskey Riff shared the video of the blink-and-you-miss-it moment and quipped: "RFK Jr. slips in a Zyn in the middle of his Senate confirmation hearing... give him the job."

Another X user replied, "Dude was thinking about that subtle move for 30 min," and another added, "Let’s be real home boy took something to take the edge off."

A third person penned, "My assumption is that it’s not a Zyn, it’s an Alp," and a fourth said, "Zyn for the win."

Another person opined, "I think it was a cough drop, because he was actually coughing right before he did that," but a separate user countered, "It looks like it goes back bottom jaw. Doesn’t seem pronounced enough for a cough drop."

Other critics suggested it would be hypocritical for him to use nicotine while rallying against seed oils in fast food and pledging to "make America healthy again."

Even a supporter of Kennedy Jr. took issue with the situation, writing: "Ok but he put down people who smoked cigarettes yesterday. I want him to get confirmed but that wasn’t cool."

However, nicotine pouches have been approved to be marketed as a better alternative to cigarettes.

"To receive marketing authorizations, the FDA must have sufficient evidence that the new products offer greater benefits to population health than risks," director of the Office of Science in the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products Matthew Farrelly, Ph.D., said in a statement. "In this case, the data show that these nicotine pouch products meet that bar by benefiting adults who use cigarettes and/or smokeless tobacco products and completely switch to these products."

Kennedy Jr. has yet to confirm or deny his use of the alleged nicotine product during the hearing, but he was photographed carrying Zyn pouches while out and about in Los Angeles, Calif., in October 2024.