Since 2017, vaping has increased 80% among high school students and 50% among middle school students. As a result, FDA has proposed new measures against flavored nicotine products. The proposed bans do not include mint, tobacco, and menthol. This will allow adults to quit smoking cigarettes and attempt to stop the outbreak of children getting addicted. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar says that "Flavors are a major reason they use these products in the first place". 2.1 million high school and middle school students vaped in 2017, and now 3.6 million students vape in 2018, a jump of 1.5 million students in one year. This could be connected to the National Minimum Drinking Age Act in 1984 passed by Congress. In order for the federal government to enforce this act, they proposed that states would lose 10% of their federal highway funds if they did not raise their ages for purchase of alcohol.
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you think FDA's proposals will help stop children from using vapes?
2. With the new sales regulations, will students still be able to easily access flavored e-cigarettes?
3. What other regulations do you think could possibly help stop the epidemic of underage e-cigarette users?
Link: https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/15/health/fda-vaping-ecigarette-regulation/index.html
I think that now that everyone is hooked on nicotine rushes, people will go to significant measures so that they can get it again. However, banning nicotine products probably help a lot in reducing addiction since it is harder to get.
ReplyDeleteI do think that the FDA will be able to impact the use of vapes among youth, because considering government agencies, the FDA is certainly the most rigorous in its enforcement and power. It has been able to use such measures before against cigarette companies, and vaping is no different. I do believe that youth will always be able to access flavored vapes, but it'll be harder, as more legitimate businesses stop providing them to minors out of fear of new regulation. New regulation that could prove effective would be going the way of many other countries and force government messages regarding the nature of nicotine onto nicotine products.
ReplyDeleteI think that in a lot of ways this action by the FDA comes too late. Many teens are already addicted to these e-cigarettes, so they will just find another way to get the nicotine that they crave. This may mean that teens start to turning to actual cigarettes, which would make the problem worse. The FDA should have dealt with this problem a long time ago, since the increase in e-cigarette usage among teenagers has been taking place for quite a long time. To deal with this issue, a more robust plan to curb usage among teenagers will be necessary.
ReplyDeleteEven if the FDA can control the substances now, there is already too many people who have their hands on these products. It may be harder to access, but teens will still be able to find their ways to purchase these products in some way or manner. However, even with an age limit to curb minors from purchasing, these regulations could prove to help teens who may have just ventured into vaping
ReplyDeleteI do think that this ban will work since it will limit the outlets kids have to get these products, but also there are already a lot of young people that have nicotine addictions which means that they will vape no matter what. The ban may work to limit the amount of new smokers/younger kids since there will be no flavored products that may attract them. In my opinion, another way to limit underage usage of these products then there should be bans on ways companies can advertise. Companies such as JUUL advertise their products as an "alternative" to smoking, and even though it is towards adults, teens still see them as a "healthier" and not as bad way of smoking. And limiting the ways they will advertise will not violate the First Amendment since they still can advertise, but these companies will just have to change the way they advertise.
ReplyDeleteWhile the FDA’s proposals seem like they have potential to impact the amount of children using vapes, I doubt that these measures and bans will be enough to stop kids from smoking. As people have already commented, at this point in time there are already too many students that have access to vapes and other products. A simple ban on certain flavors is not going to be enough to stop a significant amount of students from vaping, especially since most students go through drastic measures to get products. At this point, I think that the only way people will be able to stop underage e-cigarette users is through either an extremely strict ban or nothing at all. The only things that are convincing enough to kids to stop smoking excessively is if they witness first hand what the detrimental health effects can be like. With so many students already addicted and figuring out how to access these products, the solution will only come with time.
ReplyDeleteThe FDA's proposals may make a marginal impact on the introduction of vape products into the lives of those who do not already use them, but will probably do little to change the habits of those who already vape. I don't think these new regulations will make it any more difficult for mildly experienced kids to get their hands on what they want. A far removed FDA will routinely be outsmarted by kids it doesn't fully understand. A possible regulation to stop kids from using ecigarettes would be to ban flavored products entirely, or have some sort of monitoring system so vendors can understand who's really taking advantage of their product at any given time.
ReplyDeleteI believe that if the FDA's proposals may reduce the chances of children vaping. I do agree that flavors may be a big reason why kids get hooked on vape because the flavors would sound interesting to a kid. The FDA's regulations may make it more difficult for younger kids, but of course, a huge impact cannot be expected because there are always ways for people to get what they want. I think kids need to be taught more about the effects of vaping and how it can take a toll on their health because although it is touched upon in health classes, it is not emphasized enough to make kids realize the consequences that vaping has on their health. Nicotine is a serious problem because of the addiction that kids can fall into once they start, and it causes kids to go to desperate measures to get their "rush."
ReplyDeletethat was written by me, Gianna
DeleteGianna Garcia
DeleteI agree with everyone that the new FDA proposals might get the children that are already not using it to vape, however it might be harder for people who are using it to stop because of the FDA guidelines. I dont think that the new sales regulations will make it harder for teens to get flavored e-cigarettes. Even if it were to be harder for teens to get e-cigarettes, then there still a chance that they might get something else. To stop the epidemic of underage teens from getting e cigarettes its mostly up to the companies that make these products to be more strict to who they distribute to, and advertise it against the favor of teens.
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ReplyDeleteThe FDA should have acted sooner as many children are already addicted to vaping products. Since the FDA's proposals don't apply to age-restricted stores, children are now more likely to illegally purchase vaping products at vape shops and other various retailers. The FDA should go even further and apply restrictions to vape shops, as many of these shops have illegally sold their products to minors.
ReplyDeleteI think that the FDA regulations will slow the growth of underage people who are addicted to vaping products as the flavoring is definitely attractive to new consumers. The problem is that many underage teens are already hooked on and are addicted to nicotine. I think that children will still be able to get their hands on vaping products as there would still be high demand for the products. Right now the long term effects of vaping products are not as known as for tobacco products. The FDA will have to run a similar expensive campaign against vaping products as they did for tobacco products to reduce their use.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that this will be very effective. The flavors are one thing, but many teens are already addicted to nicotine and juul. I think the FDA should have acted on this sooner and made more age restrictive policies. I think restricting the flavors are also going to hurt the people that these e-cigarettes are actually for. Most of the people that do use these tools are for people that used to smoke cigarettes and switched because the flavors are more intriguing than actual cigarettes. When they go to corner stores or convenient stores and they don't see the flavors that they used to have they could relapse back on to cigarettes. I honestly don't think that these sale restrictions will stop teens from getting flavored products or vaping products because they will find a way to get it especially if they are addicted to it.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the FDA is trying to make these changes with good intent however it may be too late. I agree with the comments above mine that since teens are already addicted to nicotine there is no way to go back and teens will still be juuling if there was no flavors. Flavors are what enticed teens to start juuling but now they are relying on the good feeling of nicotine, not necessarily the flavors of juuls provided. It also has a lot to do with teens trying to fit in and thus feeling "peer pressured" to juul to feel like they belong and are cool.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I don't believe the FDA's proposals will do much to stop teen vaping. It's extremely easy for teens to gain access to whatever they want, vaping devices such as juuls included, and there will always be some loophole. I do believe measures need to be taken and education needs to improve so that kids know what they're partaking in at the very least, but I don't know if there's much else the FDA can do.
ReplyDeleteI believe the new FDA regulations will reduce the amount of vaping occurring with the children of America. The juul product is appealing to children because of the different fruit flavors they had, but now those flavors will be taken off the market. This will make it so that the amount of kids who begin juuling in the first place will decrease because the flavors wont look as appealing to them. I believe a regulation of the amount of nicotine within the pods would lower the amount of usage.
ReplyDeleteI believe the FDA's proposal will not help the teen vaping epidemic because of how easy it is to access these substances. It is already too late for the individuals that are already addicted to nicotine. It is no longer about the flavors, but the feeling teens get when they vape. It is an addiction. However, if it somehow works and previous teen vapers are no longer addicted to nicotine, I believe that this will entice students to move on to different substances.
ReplyDeleteI highly doubt that anything will significantly decrease vaping amongst teens. High schoolers have historically been very successful in finding ways around the law. The most obvious example is drinking; it is illegal for anyone under 21 to drink but everyone knows that many high schoolers break that rule. Thus,no matter what the FDA does vaping will still be popular and will not go away.
ReplyDeleteIf kids want something, there is a very high chance that they will go to extreme measures to get it, especially if they are chemically addicted to it. These new FDA rules are just opening the floodgates for a black market, which can make it even easier for kids to get what they want. Banning flavored products will have very minimal impacts in my opinion. I think it is too late to take any sufficient action. However, the good thing is is that vaping is a generational trend. It may last a couple decades, but something new will probably take its place in the years to come. The FDA should focus more on prevention instead of being reactive. Kids are already addicted, now they have to contain the situation. In addition, e-cigs help those who are trying to quit smoking. Smoking cigarettes was also a generational trend, as seen by the very low numbers of kids smoking cigs. The same thing will happen with vape most likely. Taking e-cigs off the market would cause an enormous scandal. The FDA failed this round, but in my opinion, all they can do at the moment is contain the current situation and be proactive so that it doesn't happen again.
ReplyDeleteWhile the FDA has a good mindset of attempting to pass stricter laws and preventing high school kids from accessing this products, I think it will not be very effective. Especially since high school kids can easily gain access to these products and go around the law to get them. These laws in place may make it harder to teens to get their hands on them, but some will go to extreme measures to get it when they experience addiction or dependence on nicotine and vaping products
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