The U.S. government has just implement a sweeping ban on e-cigarettes to people under 18.
The U.S. government is undergoing a massive crackdown on e-cigarettes and cigars in an effort to keep them out of the hands of children.
E-cigarettes and cigars have been growing in popularity among teens, and the FDA has decided to ban sales of such products to anyone under 18, according to a Reuters report.
The move basically puts cigars, e-cigarettes, pipe tobacco and hookah tobacco in the same category as cigarettes, requiring them to abide by the same guidelines, according to the report, which noted that the rules will take effect after 90 days.
The e-cigarette industry has exploded in popularity in recent years, and it is now worth $3.4 billion, enjoying a lack of federal regulation until now. The FDA will now require companies who make e-cigarettes to submit newer tobacco products for govenrment official, as well as place health warnings on packages.
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Burwell said that the government was concerned that millions of kids were being introduced to nicotine through these products, and not much is known about the safety of e-cigarettes compared to regular cigarettes.
“More than 3 million middle and high school students were current users of e-cigarettes in 2015, up from an estimated 2.46 million in 2014,” the FDA states on their website. “Sixteen percent of high school and 5.3 percent of middle school students were current users of e-cigarettes in 2015, making e-cigarettes the most commonly used tobacco product among youth for the second consecutive year. During 2011-2015, e-cigarette use rose from 1.5 percent to 16.0 percent among high school students and from 0.6 percent to 5.3 percent among middle school students. In 2013-2014, 81% of current youth e-cigarette users cited the availability of appealing flavors as the primary reason for use. In 2014, 12.6% of U.S. adults had ever tried an e-cigarette, and about 3.7% of adults used e-cigarettes daily or some days.”
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