US FDA to ban flavored electronic cigarettes in US convenience stores

The US Food and Drug Administration on Thursday announced radical new restrictions on flavored tobacco products, including popular electronic cigarettes among teens, to prevent a new generation of nicotine addicts.

This long-awaited announcement means that only tobacco, mint and menthol electronic cigarette flavors can be sold in most traditional retail stores, such as convenience stores. Other fruity or sweet – flavored varieties can now only be sold in select stores or via online merchants using age verification checks.

The FDA also plans to ban menthol cigarettes, a long-standing goal of public health advocates, as well as flavored cigars.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the measures were aimed at preventing young people from continuing to use electronic cigarettes, which could lead to traditional cigarette consumption.

"I will not allow a generation of children to become addicted to nicotine through the electronic cigarette," Gottlieb said.

The agency has faced increasing pressure to act on e-cigarettes as their popularity has grown among American teens in recent years. One of the most popular devices, manufactured by Juul Labs Inc., of San Francisco, has become a phenomenon in American high schools, where "Juuling" has become synonymous with vaping.

Electronic cigarettes vaporize a liquid containing nicotine, the addictive stimulant that encourages smokers to rush. They are generally thought to be less harmful than combustible cigarettes, but the long-term consequences of their use for health are unknown.

Data released Thursday by the FDA and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal a 78% increase in the number of high school students who reported using e-cigarettes in the last 30 days, compared to in the previous year.

According to the survey, more than 3 million high school students, or more than 20% of American high school students, have used these products, as well as 570,000 middle school students.

FIERCE RESISTANCE

Altria Group Inc., the tobacco and tobacco giant, had announced measures to remove flavored electronic cigarette products from retail outlets after the FDA had threatened to ban Juul and D & # 39; other advanced products of the electronic cigarette unless their manufacturers take measures to prevent their use by minors.

Juul, Logic, a division of Japan Tobacco Inc., Altria, which manufactures electronic cigarettes under the MarkTen brand, and Imperial Brands Plc, the manufacturer of blue electronic cigarettes, have all stated that they support efforts to reduce youth access.

Altria said she thought these devices could be "less harmful products that can provide nicotine to adults who want them."

The Imperial said it was developing a technology that could lock devices if a minor person was trying to use it.

Electronic cigarettes have been a topic of division in the public health community. Some focus on the potential benefit of replacing smokers throughout their lives with less harmful nicotine-based products, while others fear this will create a new generation of nicotine addicts.

Last year, the FDA under Gottlieb extended until 2022 the deadline of many e-cigarette products to comply with the new federal rules on marketing and public health. Current restrictions on flavorings are interim measures that companies must respect before submitting detailed plans before the deadline.

The new rules on electronic cigarette flavors mean that many of the sweet and fruity varieties considered most popular by minors will only be available in stores such as vape shops or tobaccos, which do not allow minors to penetrate inside.

The stores could also have a separate section, limited by age, which allows the sale of other flavors, the FDA said.

The agency cited survey data showing that mint and menthol flavors were more popular with adult electronic cigarette users than teenagers.

The anti-smoking and public health groups have congratulated the FDA for its proposed ban on menthol cigarettes, which data show that it is much more popular among younger smokers and especially young African-Americans .

Any initiative to ban menthol should face stiff resistance from the tobacco industry.

Menthol cigarettes account for more than 30% of US cigarette volumes and about 55% of US volumes of British American Tobacco Plc, under the Newport brand, according to an AllianceBernstein research note released earlier this week.

The FDA must go through a rule-making process, which requires significant public comment before finalizing any menthol regulations.

Imperial and Altria both said the ban on mints and flavored cigars was not supported by scientific evidence.