With the rising number of minors using e-cigarettes, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned the sale of e-cigarettes, including cigars, hookah and tobacco to those under 18. The government aims to prevent nicotine addiction among students in middle and high school.
E-Cigarette Ban And Warning Labels
Aside from banning the sale of e-cigarettes to minors, the USDA also imposed additional regulations on companies that sell e-cigarettes, cigars and hookah. They are required to put health warnings on product labels. Ingredients used on the products must also be listed.
Huffington Post reported that the sale of e-cigarettes and tobacco have been soaring among teens. While there were regulations on sale to minors, such did not directly previously apply on e-cigarettes with flavors, which is why teens in turn find vaping the better alternative.
With the recent USDA regulation, vaping among teenagers will decrease. Although there wouldn't be any control if these teens will procure e-cigarettes from somewhere else, what matters is that the manner by which it proliferates from manufacturers and sellers was regulated, minimizing the chances of teens getting their hands on it.
Family Control Act
This power that USDA wields over the regulation of e-cigarettes was given to it by the Family Control Act of 2009. Aside from e-cigarettes, USDA was also given control over tobacco products.
According to VOA News, about 3 million middle and high school students used e-cigarettes in 2015. Before that year, there were only about 500,000 students who were using e-cigarettes. Said numbers showed that a huge increase of students resorted to vaping.
The FDA will for the first time oversee e-cigarettes and tobacco vapor devices https://t.co/95cgfso5uR pic.twitter.com/O4hoYvgR7x
— Bloomberg (@business) May 5, 2016
While parents and many teachers applaud the new USDA regulation, the same didn't sit well with the president of the American Vaping Association, Gregory Conley. He said that the requirements will be hurting tobacco products and manufacturers. He also said that the regulation will put "tens of thousands of jobs on the line."
According to WebMD, the nicotine inside e-cigarettes cartridge is addictive. The moment one stops using them, one may experience withdrawal symptoms like getting depressed, restlessness, feeling irritable and being anxious.
The use of e-cigarettes may be less harmful compared to smoking. However, experts say that since one doesn't really know the long term effects of vaping, it is better to stay away from it than risk trying and suffer unknown consequences. The USDA may be in the right when it banned sale of e-cigarettes to minors.
