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The researchers say that the popularity of Juul and other vaping products could encourage teens to smoke.
There are some important steps that humanity should be proud of, including increasing the lifespan of people around the world and protecting against many preventable diseases.
But new research supported by data from the e-cigarette industry suggests that we could revisit one of these milestones.
"The substantial reduction in smoking in the United States represents one of the most important advances in public health in the last 50 years," begins a new paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
The authors of the paper pointed to the latest report from the National Survey of Drug Use Outcomes, which shows that the smoking rate among first and second cycle students increased from 28% in 1997 to 5% in 2017.
"These positive trends suggest that the powerful appeal of tobacco and nicotine has been reduced among younger generations," the paper said.
But with electronic cigarettes capable of delivering nicotine levels comparable to those of cigarettes, the authors of the newspaper fear that these products "have the potential to cancel years of progress if a new generation of young people becomes dependent."
Although presented as a safer alternative to cigarettes because they contain fewer toxins and carcinogens, e-cigarettes are not just used by smokers trying to quit.
And this, the researchers say, is a major concern.
"In-depth research has shown that the harmful effects of nicotine on brain development and exposure to nicotine during adolescence are likely to impair cognitive function and development," says Dr. # 39; section.
Earlier this month, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration, made a statement about the epidemic of youth smoking.
"We need a regulatory process that requires product applications to show that marketing the product is appropriate for the protection of the health of the entire population, "said his release. "And we need a regulatory process that keeps these same electronic cigarette products out of the hands of young people."
The Juul brand, based in San Francisco, is particularly troubling about the goal of "improving the lives of the one billion adult smokers," according to the product's website.
Although the market has been on the market for only a few years, researchers note that the product now accounts for more than 65% of all electronic cigarette sales.
It has become so popular that teens use the term "juul" instead of vaping or smoking.
Juul devices and their pods containing nicotine contain nicotine salts derived from tobacco leaves, which, according to experts, can deliver nicotine at levels comparable to those of cigarettes.
This, combined with flavors that make the aerosol harder than other electronic cigarettes "could lead to nicotine addiction in children and adolescents."
The lead author of the journal was Robin Koval, the executive director of the Truth Initiative, the largest non-profit public health organization in the United States dedicated to tobacco use.
It is the organization that manages many of the anti-fog campaigns across the country.
Kara Stucklen, a spokesperson for the Truth Initiative, said that young people are attracted to vaping products for many reasons, including the variety of flavors available, including mango or fresh mint.
She says this is of particular concern because the amount of nicotine in a standard Juul pod is roughly equivalent to nicotine in a pack of cigarettes.
"Despite JUUL's claim that they are" only for adults ", this has created a cult trend among young people, most of whom do not realize they are inhaling nicotine when they wash themselves," Stucklen said.
To combat these trends, Koval and the other JAMA authors advocate tighter regulatory measures to maintain smoking rates among youth.
This involves requiring an age check for internet sales, banning branded products and carefully considering how the flavors are used in the products, as well as where and how electronic cigarettes are marketed.
Juul has been accused of using advertising and marketing tactics similar to the "Big Tobacco Prohibited Tips".
In response to these claims, Juul aired advertisements on several types of media, reminding potential customers that its products are intended for smokers who want to quit, not children.
In its "marketing code", the company says it is a "substitute product" for age-appropriate users.
They say they do not target or introduce children with their advertising and that their product "is not appropriate or intended for young people".
Karina DiLuzio, a smoking cessation specialist at Allina Health in Minneapolis, says the JAMA newspaper has missed out on a few points that there is little evidence that e-cigarettes are an effective stop-smoking tool.
"They are not designed to help people quit smoking and very few people have actually stopped using these products," she told Healthline.
That, she says, starts the argument of flavors that would keep these products "attractive" to adults, so what's the problem with removing the flavors?
"The only thing that will deter will be to make our kids addicted to nicotine," DiLuzio said. "Those who are about to use such a product would be less inclined if it did not seem so attractive, mischievous and candid. Fun and fruity flavors imply harmless innocence.
However, according to DiLuzio, implementing this type of regulation on tobacco products is a difficult task.
"Big Tobacco has enough money, influence, and resources to significantly slow the process of limiting everything to tobacco," she said.
Although marketed as aids to help adults quit smoking, the evidence is not sufficient to conclude that e-cigarettes are effective.
Experts warn that the prevalence of vaping – ie juicing – in children could encourage another generation to become nicotine.
They are concerned that this will increase teenage smoking rates, which have been declining for decades.
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