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FDA Chief Considers Ban of All Flavored E-Cigarettes (wsj.com)
Calling a surge in teen use of e-cigarettes an epidemic, the head of the Food and Drug Administration says he is considering pulling all flavored e-cigarettes from the U.S. market. From a report: After years of declining U.S. smoking rates, sales of e-cigarettes have jumped in the past year, fueled in part by online startups selling vaporizers and nicotine-laced liquids. The most popular brand, Juul, sells refills with mango, cucumber and creme flavors. Each $4 pod contains as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes. "The number of teenagers we believe are now using these products... has reached an epidemic proportion," said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, who is expected to announce new measures Wednesday to curb underage use. Dr. Gottlieb said he believes that certain flavors make the products appealing to teens. "The availability of e-cigarettes cannot come at the expense of addicting a new generation of youth onto nicotine, and it won't," he said in an interview. Alternative source, and official announcement.
Not applicable to teens, perhaps, but it has helped my dad quit smoking and slowly decrease the nicotine content over time. Addiction aside, it is a stimulant, so there's that as something people might like.
Why stop there? Ban all caffeine too! It is addictive and has the same risk factors as nicotine. Plus all those sugary caffeinated drinks are clearly marketed solely to get children addicted.
Nicotine in vape liquid is not "to get people addicted". It is because people want nicotine. People like nicotine because it is a stimulant. Nicotine is addictive because it is a stimulant and because people like it.
Here here. This move completely ignores the fact that sales are only for those over 18, and the science on the issue: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/e-cigarettes-around-95-less-harmful-than-tobacco-estimates-landmark-review
Nicotine on its own is much like caffeine: highly addictive, but not that harmful. It's the other crap in cigarettes that kills you. Vaping has no carcinogens.
But don't let science get in the way of some good political FUD, eh?
Because the consequences of abandoning tobacco are far less dire than the consequences of abandoning employment.
He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
I was sitting out on a patio at a restaurant last week, with a college-aged guy doing some form of smoking at the table next to us. We had maple-bacon smoke wafting over us for the better part of 30 minutes as he blew big, billowing plumes for his own amusement.
Maple-bacon scented patios may sound like some people's idea of a pleasant evening, but as someone with asthma, it's not unusual for me to feel my airways closing up when I'm exposed to strong scents, which I've had happen before with e-cigs and vaporizers. Thankfully, nothing happened this time, so it was little more than a random thing that happened that evening, but I don't want to see a return to the way things were a few decades ago. People always talk about the big risks when it comes to this stuff—addiction, cancer, death—but we shouldn't forget that there's a significant decrease in the quality of life for others when being able to breathe easily is something they need to concern themselves with.
There's ample reason to ban public cologne and perfume as well, but it hasn't happened. At least the vapers stop emitting the vape when they go inside.