Editorial: Kids and e-cigs
Gainsville Sun Editorial:
As anti-smoking campaigns reduce tobacco use among young people, public health advocates see a new threat in electronic cigarettes.
E-cigarettes convert liquid nicotine into a vapor that users inhale. They come in flavors such as various types of fruits and candies, potentially attracting children to use them.
The 2013 Florida Youth Tobacco Survey found that 12 percent of high school students had tried e-cigarettes, an increase of 102 percent since 2011.
Alachua County Commissioner Robert Hutchinson asked staff to draft an ordinance to ban the sale of e-cigarettes to minors, require them to be placed behind counters in stores and prohibit their use in non-smoking areas. Clay County has enacted and Marion County is considering similar measures.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is also considering the regulation of e-cigarettes. A federal rule would be more effective than a patchwork of local ordinances.
In the meantime, Alachua County and other municipalities are right to work to keep e-cigarettes out of the hands of minors. Yet the county should resist the urge to regulate the personal behavior of adults that doesn’t affect others.
Some research suggests that e-cigarettes help a small percentage of tobacco users quit. But the health effects of inhaling nicotine vapor are unclear, and the track record of the tobacco companies that sell some e-cigarette brands gives reason to be skeptical of claims that it is a safe alternative to smoking.
It’s reasonable to regulate an addictive product that poses potential health risks. Hopefully the FDA soon does it job and prevents the need for Alachua County to act.
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20131102/OPINION01/131039866/-1/entertainment?Title=Editorial-Kids-and-e-cigs&tc=ar
The 2013 Florida Youth Tobacco Survey found that 12 percent of high school students had tried e-cigarettes, an increase of 102 percent since 2011.
Alachua County Commissioner Robert Hutchinson asked staff to draft an ordinance to ban the sale of e-cigarettes to minors, require them to be placed behind counters in stores and prohibit their use in non-smoking areas. Clay County has enacted and Marion County is considering similar measures.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is also considering the regulation of e-cigarettes. A federal rule would be more effective than a patchwork of local ordinances.
In the meantime, Alachua County and other municipalities are right to work to keep e-cigarettes out of the hands of minors. Yet the county should resist the urge to regulate the personal behavior of adults that doesn’t affect others.
Some research suggests that e-cigarettes help a small percentage of tobacco users quit. But the health effects of inhaling nicotine vapor are unclear, and the track record of the tobacco companies that sell some e-cigarette brands gives reason to be skeptical of claims that it is a safe alternative to smoking.
It’s reasonable to regulate an addictive product that poses potential health risks. Hopefully the FDA soon does it job and prevents the need for Alachua County to act.
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20131102/OPINION01/131039866/-1/entertainment?Title=Editorial-Kids-and-e-cigs&tc=ar
